LIFE  OF  ELIE   METCHNIKOFF 


AUTHORISED   TRANSLATION  FROM  THE  FRENCH 


(LIFE  OF 
ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

1845-1916, 

BY 

OLGA    METCHNIKOFF 


WITH  A  PREFACE  BY 

SIR  RAY    LANKESTER    K.C.B.  F.R.S. 


BOSTON   AND   NEW   YORK 

HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN   COMPANY 

1921 


Printed  in  Great  Britain. 


PREFACE 

IT  has  been  a  great  satisfaction  to  me  to  carry  out  the 
wish  of  my  dear  friend  Elie  Metchnikoff,  and  arrange 
for  the  production  of  an  English  translation  of  his 
biography.  The  account  of  his  life  and  work  written 
by  Olga  Metchnikoff  is  a  remarkable  and  beautiful 
record  of  the  development  and  activities  of  a  great 
discoverer.  It  is  remarkable  because  it  is  seldom 
that  one  who  undertakes  such  a  task  has  had  so 
constant  a  share  in,  and  so  complete  a  knowledge  and 
understanding  of,  the  life  portrayed  as  in  the  present 
case  :  seldom  that  the  intimate  thought  and  mental 
"  adventure  "  of  a  discoverer  presents  so  clear  and 
consistent  a  history.  It  is  beautiful  because  it  is 
put  before  us  with  perfect  candour  and  simplicity 
guided  by  rare  intelligence  and  inspired  by  deep 
affection.  Madame  Metchnikoff  has  drawn  the 
picture  of  the  development  of  a  single-minded 
character  absolutely  and  tenaciously  devoted  to  a 
high  purpose — the  improvement  of  human  life.  It 
is  a  story  of  "  struggles  and  adventures,"  but  they 
are  wholly  in  the  field  of  the  investigation  of  Nature. 
We  read  here  little  or  nothing  of  the  quest  for  personal 
advancement,  for  fortune  or  official  position.  These 
things  had  no  attraction  for  Metchnikoff.  He  left 


vi  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Russia  and  took  an  unpaid  post  in  Paris  in  order  to 
have  a  place  to  work  in.  He  had  many  devoted 
friends  in  whose  company  he  sought  refreshment  and 
relaxation,  but  all  his  immense  energy  and  industry 
were  concentrated  on  the  development  and  establish- 
ment of  his  great  biological  theory  of  "  Phagocytosis  " 
and  its  outcome,  the  philosophy  of  life  called  by  him 
"  Orthobiosis."  This  volume  tells  truly  of  a  simple 
life — a  life  in  which  the  social  incidents  which  fill  so 
large  a  space  in  most  lives  were  either  non-existent 
or  unnoticed  because,  by  the  side  of  the  great  purpose 
which  dominated  MetchnikofFs  every  thought  and 
action — namely,  the  advancement  of  Science — lie  was 
not  touched  by  them.  He  was  affectionate,  kind- 
hearted,  and  truly  considerate  of  others,  but  was,  in 
a  way  which  is  traceable  to  his  racial  origin,  a  practical 
idealist  concentrating  his  whole  strength  and  reason 
on  the  realisation  of  what  he  held  to  be  the  highest 
good. 

I  had  as  an  eager  reader  of  memoirs  on  bio- 
logical subjects  become  acquainted  with  Metchnikoff's 
earliest  publications  in  1865,  when  he  was  twenty 
years  of  age  and  I  two  years  younger.  I  wrote  short 
accounts  of  them,  as  they  appeared,  for  a  chronicle 
of  progress  in  the  Quarterly  Journal  of  Microscopical 
Science,  then  edited  by  my  father.  Those  on  a 
European  Land  Planarian,  on  the  development  of 
Myzostomum  (the  parasite  of  the  Feather-Star),  on 
Apsilus,  a  strange  new  kind  of  wheel-animalcule,  and 
his  protest  against  Rudolf  Leuckart's  treatment  of 
him  in  the  matter  of  his  important  discoveries  con- 


PREFACE  vii 

cerning  the  Frog's  lung-worm — Ascaris  nigrovenosa — 
remain  in  my  memory,  and  later,  in  1872,  I  was 
especially  struck  by  his  important  demonstration  of 
the  true  mode  of  development  of  the  gastrula  of  the 
calcareous  sponges  in  correction  of  Professor  Ernst 
Haeckel.  Many  other  papers  of  his  became  known 
to  me,  until  in  1881  he  published  his  first  observa- 
tions on  Intracellular  Digestion  in  Lower  Animals, 
which  was  the  starting-point  of  his  life's  work  on 
"  Phagocytosis,"  to  which  all  his  subsequent  re- 
searches— during  thirty-five  years — were  exclusively 
dedicated. 

In  L888  I  was  introduced  by  my  friend  Lauder 
Brunton  to  the  great  Pasteur,  and  called  on  him  at 
his  laboratory  in  the  rue  d'Ulm.  There  I  met 
Metchnikoff,  only  lately  arrived  from  Russia,  and 
welcomed  as  one  of  his  staff  by  Pasteur.  The  next 
year,  1889,  Pasteur  was  installed  in  the  new  "  Institut 
Pasteur  "  in  the  rue  Dutot,  and  I  met  Metchnikoff 
there  in  his  new  quarters.  Pasteur's  assistants  were 
carrying  on  daily  his  system  of  inoculation  against 
rabies,  and  many  British  subjects  were  amongst  those 
treated.  I  persuaded  the  Lord  Mayor  of  that  year, 
Sir  James  Whitehead,  to  visit  the  Pasteur  Institute 
with  a  view  to  taking  steps  to  make  some  recognition 
of  the  services  rendered  by  Pasteur  to  our  fellow- 
countrymen  in  treating  over  two  hundred  of  them 
threatened  with  hydrophobia.  Sir  James  called  a 
meeting  on  July  1,  1889,  at  the  Mansion  House,  and 
placed  the  management  of  it  in  my  hands.  As  a 
result  we  obtained  subscriptions  to  a  fund  which 


viii          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

enabled  us  to  assist  many  poor  British  subjects  to 
visit  Paris  for  the  purpose  of  undergoing  M.  Pasteur's 
treatment,  to  make  a  donation  of  30,000  francs  to  the 
Pasteur  Institute,  and  to  initiate  with  a  sum  of 
£300  the  formation  of  a  fund  for  the  purpose  of 
establishing  an  Institute  in  London  similar  in  purpose 
and  character  to  the  Institut  Pasteur.  That  initial 
fund  has  step  by  step  received  generous  additions  and 
given  us  the  "  Lister  Institute  "  on  Chelsea  Embank- 
ment possessed  of  buildings,  site,  and  capital  valued 
at  more  than  £300,000. 

After  1889  it  was  rare  for  a  year  to  pass  without 
my  visiting  Paris  both  in  spring  and  summer,  and 
seeing  a  great  deal  of  Metchnikoff  and  his  friends 
Roux,  Duclaux,  Laveran,  and  the  great  master  of  the 
Pastorians,  who  died  in  1895.  Metchnikoff  took  me 
to  his  home  and  cemented  his  friendship  with  me  by 
bringing  to  me  that  of  his  gifted  and  devoted  wife. 

Madame  Metchnikoff  had  when  a  schoolgirl  studied 
zoology  under  her  future  husband  at  Odessa,  and  now 
was  able  to  give  serious  help  in  some  of  his  researches. 
She  published  some  experimental  investigation  on  the 
sterilisation  of  the  alimentary  canal  of  tadpoles  and 
some  other  researches,  and  having  a  thorough  know- 
ledge of  English,  which  Elie  did  not  possess,  she  helped 
him  in  reading  and  translating  from  that  language. 
But  her  chief  talents  were  in  the  arts  of  painting  and 
sculpture,  and  when  they  purchased  their  country 
house  at  Sevres,  she  built  a  studio  in  the  garden  in 
which  to  pursue  her  vocation. 

Metchnikoff  on  several  occasions  came  to  England 


PREFACE  ix 

to  take  part  in  "  congresses "  or  to  give  special 
addresses,  and  often  stayed  a  day  or  two  with  me  in 
London.1  I  was  with  him  at  the  Darwin  Celebration 
at  Cambridge  in  1909,  and  the  last  occasion  when  he 
came  was  to  give  the  Priestley  Lecture  of  the  National 
Health  Society  in  November  1912.  At  my  request 
he  selected  "  The  Warfare  against  Tuberculosis  "  as 
his  subject,  and  gave  a  most  valuable  account  of  the 
history  and  actual  condition  of  that  enterprise, 
relating  the  important  results  of  his  expedition  to  the 
Kalmuk  Tartars  for  the  purpose  of  studying  the 
immunity  from  and  the  liability  to  infection  by 
tuberculosis  among  that  nomad  population.  The 
lecture  was  delivered  in  French,  and  I  made  a  trans- 
lation of  it  which  appeared  with  numerous  illustra- 
tions in  the  journal  called  Bedrock,  published  by 
Constable  &  Co.  I  mention  that  publication  here 
as  it  is  the  only  one  excepting  the  three  lectures  on 
"  The  New  Hygiene  "  (Heinemann,  London,  1906) 
originally  published  in  an  English  form  by  Metchnikoff , 
and  deserves  more  attention  from  the  English  medical 
public  than  it  has  received. 

I  found  Metchnikoff  a  delightful  companion.  He 
always  had  something  new  or  of  special  interest  to 
show  to  me  at  the  laboratory — some  microscopical 
preparation,  the  digestive  process  in  Protozoa,  the 
microbian  parasite  of  a  water-flea,  a  new  method  of 

1  He  received  an  honorary  degree  at  Cambridge  in  1891,  and  also 
attended  the  International  Medical  Congress  in  London  in  that  year.  In 
1901  he  gave  a  lecture  at  Manchester  on  the  intestinal  flora.  In  1906  he 
gave  a  course  of  three  lectures  in  London  on  "The  New  Hygiene."  I 
translated  them  for  him,  and  they  were  published  as  a  little  volume  by 
Heinemann. 

b 


x  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

dark  ground  illumination  with  high  powers  (Com- 
mandant's method  for  film  production),  the  newly 
discovered  Treponema  of  syphilis,  or  the  experimental 
inoculation  of  a  disease  under  study.  Sometimes  I 
would  lunch  at  his  house,  when,  although  he  neither 
smoked  nor  took  alcoholic  drinks  himself,  he  made  a 
point  of  giving  me  first-rate  claret  and  a  good  cigar. 
It  was  about  the  year  1900  that  he  arranged  for  the 
preparation  of  a  pure  "  sour  milk  "  made  by  the  use 
of  a  special  lactic  ferment  (selected  and  cultivated 
by  hknself),  and  this  he  took  regularly.  I  found  it  a 
most  agreeable  food,  and  for  several  years  made  it 
an  article  of  my  own  diet.  He  was  very  careful  about 
the  possible  contamination  of  uncooked  food  by 
bacteria  and  the  eggs  of  parasitic  worms,  and  in 
consequence  had  "  rolls  "  sent  to  him  from  the  bakers 
each  in  its  separate  paper  bag,  whilst  he  would  never 
eat  uncooked  salads  or  fruit  which  could  not  be 
rendered  safe  by  "  peeling."  This  was  not  an  excess 
of  caution,  but  resulted  from  his  characteristic  deter- 
mination to  carry  out  in  practice  the  directions  given 
by  definite  scientific  knowledge,  and  to  make  the 
attempt  to  lead  so  far  as  possible  a  life  free  from 
disease.  Often  when  I  arrived  in  Paris  he  would 
invite  me  to  lunch  at  one  of  the  leading  cafes,  and 
though  he  ate  very  simple  food  himself  took  keen 
pleasure  in  ordering  the  best  for  me  and  thoroughly 
enjoyed  the  change  of  scene  and  the  amenities  of  a 
first-rate  restaurant.  During  one  of  his  visits  to 
London,  I  remember  that  he  was  invited,  and  I  with 
him,  on  two  or  three  occasions,  by  leading  London 


PREFACE  xi 

physicians  to  dinner-parties.  He  was  greatly  shocked 
at  the  amount  of  strong  wine  which  his  hosts  and 
fellow-guests  consumed,  and  assured  me  that  in  Paris 
it  would  be  injurious  to  the  reputation  of  a  physician 
were  he  not  to  set  an  example  of  either  abstinence  or 
great  moderation. 

Metchnikofi  was  not  only  exceedingly  gentle  and 
courteous  in  his  treatment  of  servants  and  employes, 
but  he  and  his  wife  contrived  on  a  very  small  income 
to  help  in  a  most  substantial  way  poor  neighbours 
and  those  who  had  met  with  misfortune  whether  they 
were  of  French  or  Russian  nationality.  They  had 
many  friends  in  the  world  of  science  and  art,  real 
workers  and  thinkers,  including  those  who  had  not 
and  those  who  had  "  arrived."  With  them  I  met 
and  spent  a  long  and  interesting  day  with  Rodin  the 
sculptor  and  the  son  of  Leon  Tolstoi,  who  was 
working  in  a  Paris  studio.  Among  the  pleasures 
which  I  have  derived  from  the  Life  are  the  accounts 
of  places  such  as  Naples  and  Messina,  where  I 
stayed  in  order  to  study  the  embryology  of  marine 
animals  as  Metchnikoff  did ;  and  also  the  appear- 
ance in  these  pages  from  time  to  time  of  old  friends 
such  as  Nikolas  Kleinenberg,  whom  Metchnikofi  met 
at  Messina  in  1883.  I  had  formed  an  intimate 
acquaintance  with  Kleinenberg  at  Jena  in  1871, 
when  he  was  working  at  his  classical  monograph 
on  Hydra,  and  continued  it  at  Naples  in  1875. 
From  Messina,  where  he  became  Professor  in  1875, 
Kleinenberg  sent  me  for  publication  in  the  Quarterly 
Journal  of  Microscopical  Science  his  valuable  memoir 


xii  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

on  the  embryology  of  a  species  of  Earthworm,  and 
also  rare  and  interesting  specimens  of  Cephalopoda. 

Another  great  and  noteworthy  figure  about  whom 
all  zoologists  are  glad  to  learn  as  much  as  possible  is 
Kovalevsky.  Metchnikoff  made  his  acquaintance 
at  Naples  in  1864,  and  they  formed  a  close  friendship 
for  one  another.  Later,  in  1867,  they  shared  the  Baer 
Prize  of  the  Petersburg  Academy  for  their  discoveries 
in  embryology  (p.  58).  In  1868  Metchnikoff  had  a 
dispute  with  Kovalevsky  as  to  the  origin  of  the 
nervous  system  of  Ascidia  (p.  62),  concerning  which 
he  subsequently  admitted  that  he  was  wrong  and 
Kovalevsky  right.  There  is  no  doubt  that  Kovalevsky, 
by  his  numerous  important  investigations  of  inverte- 
brate embryology,  and  especially  of  that  of  Ascidia 
and  Amphioxus,  laid  the  foundation  of  cellular 
Embryology,  and  the  modern  study  of  the  embryology 
of  Invertebrates.  Metchnikoffs  contributions  were 
also  of  great  value  and  importance  (pp.  51,  52,  53, 
and  pp.  72  and  73),  though  he  has  not  so  great  a 
triumph  in  animal  morphology  to  his  credit  as 
Kovalevsky's  discovery  of  the  close  identities  of  the 
development  of  organs  in  Ascidia  and  Amphioxus. 
I  had  long  cherished  profound  esteem  for  Kovalevsky 
when  in  1896  I  met  him  and  his  daughter  at  Wimereux 
with  Professor  Giard.  He  came  in  the  autumn  of 
that  year  to  London,  but  left  unexpectedly  owing  to 
some  nervous  fear  of  annoyance  by  the  police.  The 
great  position  of  Kovalevsky  was  deliberately  ignored 
in  a  German  history  of  Zoology,1  published  just  before 

1  By  Prof.  Hertwig  of  Munich. 


PREFACE  xiii 

the  Great  War.  Metchnikoff  describes  Kovalevsky 
as  a  young  man,  small  and  timid,  with  shy  but  cordial 
manners  and  the  clear  sweet  eyes  of  a  child  :  he  had 
(like  Metchnikoff)  for  Science  an  absolute  cult — "  no 
sacrifice  was  too  great,  no  difficulty  too  repellent  for 
his  ardour." 

It  is,  I  think,  desirable  to  assure  the  reader  of 
this  book  that  the  actual  state  of  knowledge  in 
regard  to  various  subjects  discussed  in  the  Life  at  the 
time  when  they  were  made  the  subjects  of  study  by 
Metchnikoff  is  fairly  and  correctly  sketched,  and  the 
growth  and  development  of  his  views  and  original 
discoveries  are  correctly  given.  But  it  must  be 
remembered  that  this  Life  is  not  a  critical  discussion 
of  the  steps  by  which  our  knowledge  of  cell-layers, 
of  intracellular  digestion,  and  other  factors  con- 
tributory to  Metchnikoff 's  doctrine  of  Phagocytosis 
and  its  outcomes  were  reached.  Others  played  an 
important  if  a  subsidiary  part  in  building  up  that 
knowledge.  What  we  have  here  is  an  account  of 
the  growth  of  Metchnikoff's  own  observations  and 
theoretical  inferences,  which  were  so  independent,  and 
founded  on  such  decisive  original  observations,  as  to 
make  him  a  solitary  figure  contending,  and  successfully 
contending,  during  the  best  years  of  his  lifetime  for 
the  recognition  of  a  great  generalisation  for  long 
opposed  by  most  of  the  medical  and  physiological 
authorities  of  the  time,  and  finally  established  by  his 
lifelong  researches  and  those  of  his  faithful  pupils 
and  coadjutors.  The  recognition  of  the  validity  of 


xiv         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

the  doctrine  of  'phagocytosis  in  relation  to  wounds, 
disease,  immunity,  and  normal  healthy  life  is  the 
triumphant  result  of  the  scientific  insight  and  bound- 
less energy  of  Elie  Metchnikoff. 

E.  RAY  LANKESTER. 


XV 


PREFACE    . 
INTRODUCTION 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 
V 


CHAPTEE  I 

1845.      Panassovka — MetchnikofFs  parents  —  Country  life  in 

Little  Russia  1 


CHAPTEE  II 

MetchnikofFs  brothers  and  sister — Childish  characteristics 


8 


CHAPTEE  III 

1850.  Journey  to  Slaviansk — The  coach  attacked  by  peasants       12 

CHAPTEE  IV 

1851.  Departure  for  Kharkoff — Town  life     .  .  .16 

CHAPTEE  V 

1853-1856.     Leo    MetchnikofFs    illness  —  Private    tutors  — 

Botanical  studies — A  memorable  birthday  .  .19 

CHAPTEE  VI 

Ancestors  of  the  Metchnikoff  family — The  great  "Spatar" — Leo 

Nevahovitch  23 


xvi          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 
CHAPTEK  VII 

PAGE 

1856-1861.  The  Kharkoff  Lyce"e — Bogomoloff  and  Socialism 
— Atheism — Natural  History  studies  —  Private  lodgings 
— Private  lessons  in  histology  from  Professor  Tschelkoff — A 
borrowed  microscope — First  article — Italian  opera — The 
gold  medal  ...  .28 

CHAPTER  VIII 

An  early  love — A  schoolfellow's  sister — A  pretty  sister-in-law    .       35 

CHAPTER  IX 

1862.  Journey  to  Germany — Leipzig,  Wiirzburg — A  hasty  return        37 

CHAPTER  X 

1863.  Kharkoff  University — Physiology — The  Vorticella — 
Controversy  with  Kiihne — The  Origin  of  Species — Gastero- 
tricha — University  degree         .  ,  .  .  .40 

CHAPTER  XI 

1864-1866.  Heligoland — Giessen  Congress — Leuckart — Visit 
to  Leo  Metchnikoff  at  Geneva — Socialist  gatherings — 
Metchnikoffs  discovery  appropriated  by  Leuckart — Naples 
—  Kovalevsky  —  Comparative  embryology  —  Embryonic 
layers — Bakounine  and  Setch6noff — Cholera  at  Naples — 
Gottingen — Anatomical  studies — Munich  ;  von  Sieboldt — 
Music — Return  to  Naples — Intracellular  digestion  .  43 

CHAPTER  XII 

1867-1868.  Petersburg — Baer  Prize — Return  home — Friend- 
ship with  Cienkovsky — Odessa — Naturalists'  Congress  at 
Petersburg — Departure  from  Odessa — Zoological  Lecturer's 
Chair  at  Petersburg — Messina — Enforced  rest — Reggio — 
Naples — Controversy  with  Kovalevsky — Visit  to  the 
B.  family  —  Mile.  F&Iorovitch — Educational  questions — 
Difficulties  of  life  in  Petersburg  .  .  .  ,58 


CONTENTS  xvii 


CHAPTER  XIII 

PAGE 

1868-1873.  Slight  illness — Engagement  to  Mile.  Fddorovitch 
— Marriage — Illness  of  the  bride — Pecuniary  difficulties 
— Spezzia — Montreux — Work  in  Petersburg  University — 
The  Riviera  —  Coelomata  and  Accelomata  —  St  Vaast  — 
Panassovka — Madeira  —  Mertens — Teneriffe  —  Return  to 
Odessa — Bad  news,  hurried  journey  to  Madeira — Death  of 
hiswife(1872) — Return  through  Spain — Attempted  suicide 
— Ephemeridse  .  .  .  .  .  .65 

CHAPTER  XIV 

1874.  Anthropological  expedition  to  the  Kalmuk  steppes — 
Affection  of  the  eyes — Second  expedition  to  the  steppes — 

The  eggs  of  the  Geophilus  .  .  .  .82 

CHAPTER  XV 

1875.  Studies  on  childhood — The  family  in  the  upper  flat — 
Lessons  in  zoology — Second  marriage — Private  life — Visit 

and  death  of  Lvovna  Nevahovna — Conjugal  affection         .        86 

CHAPTER  XVI 

1875-1880.  Metchnikoff  at  the  age  of  30 — Lecturing  in  Odessa 
University,  from  1873  to  1882 — Internal  difficulties — 
Assassination  of  the  Tsar,  Alexander  II. — Further  troubles 
in  the  University — Resignation — Bad  health:  cardiac 
symptoms  —  Relapsing  fever — Choroiditis — Studies  on 
Ephemeridae — Further  studies  on  intracellular  digestion 
— The  Parenchymella — Holidays  in  the  country — Experi- 
ments on  agricultural  pests  .  .  .  .96 

CHAPTER  XVII 

1881-1882.  Death  of  his  father-  and  mother-in-law — Manage- 
ment of  country  estates — Agitation  and  difficulties — De- 
parture for  Messina  with  young  brothers-  and  sisters-in-law  112 


xviii        LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 
CHAPTER  XVIII 

PAGE 

1883.  Messina — Inception  of  the  phagocyte  theory — Encourage- 
ment from  Virchow  and  Kleinenberg — First  paper  on  phago- 
cytosis at  a  Congress  at  Odessa  in  1883 — The  question  of 
immunity — Article  in  Virchow's  Archiv,  1884  .  .  115 

CHAPTER  XIX 

1884-1885.  Ill-health  of  his  wife  and  sister-in-law — Journey 
to  Tangiers  through  Spain — Villefranche — Baumgarten 
criticises  the  phagocyte  theory  .  .  .  .123 

CHAPTER  XX 

1886.  A   Bacteriological   Institute  in  Odessa — Unsatisfactory 
conditions — Experiments  on  erysipelas  and   on  relapsing 
fever     ....  ...      127 

CHAPTER  XXI 

1887.  Hygiene  Congress  in  Vienna — Wiesbaden — Munich — 
Paris  and  Pasteur — Berlin  and  Koch — Failure  of  anthrax 
vaccination  of  sheep — Decision  to  leave  Kussia      .  .131 

CHAPTER  XXII 

1888.  The  Pasteur  Institute — Dreams  realised — Metchnikoff 
at    50 — Growing    optimism — Attenuated    sensitiveness — 

The  Sevres  villa  (1898) — Daily  routine   .  .  .135 

CHAPTER  XXIII 

1892.  Opposition  to  the  phagocyte  theory — Scientific  con- 
troversies— Experiments  in  support  of  the  phagocyte  theory 
— Behring  and  antitoxins — The  London  Congress — 
Inflammation  .  .  .  .  .  .147 

CHAPTER  XXIV 

Cholera — Experiments  on  himself  and   others — Illness  of  M. 

Jupille — Death  of  an  epileptic  subject — Insufficient  results     154 


CONTENTS  xix 

CHAPTER  XXV 

PAGE 

1894.  Pfeiffer's  experiments — The  Buda-Pest  Congress — 
Extracellular  destruction  of  microbes — Reaction  of  the 
organism  against  toxins — Dr.  Besredka's  researches — 
Macrophages — The  Moscow  Congress — Bordet's  experiments  168 

CHAPTER  XXVI 

1900.     Immunity — Natural  immunity — Artificial  immunity  .     168 

CHAPTER  XXVII 

1893-1905.  Private  sorrows — Death  of  Pasteur — Ill-health 
—  Senile  atrophies  —  Premature  death  —  Orthobiosis  — 
Syphilis  (1905) — Acquisition  of  anthropoid  apes  (1903)  .  181 

CHAPTER  XXVIII 

Researches  on  the  intestinal  flora — Sour  milk.  .  .196 

CHAPTER  XXIX 

1908.     The  Nobel  Prize — Journey  to  Sweden  and  Russia — A 

day  with  Leon  Tolstoi     .  .  .  .  .199 

CHAPTER  XXX 

Intestinal  flora — Infantile  cholera — Typhoid  fever — Articles  on 

popular  Science  .....     206 

CHAPTER  XXXI 

1911.     Expedition  to  the  Kalmuk  steppes  to  study  tuberculosis — 

Plague  .  .  .  .  .  .  .210 

CHAPTER  XXXII 

Further  researches  on  the  intestinal  flora — Forty  Years'  Search 

for  a  Rational  Conception  of  Life  .  .  .220 


xx  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

CHAPTER  XXXIII 

PAGE 

Unpleasant  incidents  —  The  fabrication  of  lacto-bacilli — St. 
Le"ger-en-Yvelines — Return  to  Paris — First  cardiac  attack 
— Evolution  of  the  death  instinct — Notes  on  his  symptoms  225 

CHAPTER  XXXIV 

1914.  Return  to  St.  Le"ger-en-  Yvelines — Norka — Studies  on  the 
death  of  the  silk-worm  moth — War  declared — Mobilisation     237 

CHAPTER  XXXV 

1915.  Return  to  Paris — The  deserted  Institute — Memoir  on  the 
Founders  of  Modern    Medicine — MetchnikofPs  Jubilee — 

Last  holidays  at  Norka   .  .  ,.        "   .     '         .     244 

CHAPTER    XXXVI 

1916.  Bronchial  cold — Aggravated  cardiac  symptoms — Farewell 
to  Sevres — Return  to  the  Institute — Protracted  sufferings 
— Intellectual  preoccupations — Observations  on  his  own 
condition — The  end — Cremation  .  .  .254 

EPILOGUE.  ..  .         '     .  .  .  .     276 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  APPENDIX  .  .  .285 

INDEX  ,     291 


XXI 


INTRODUCTION 

ON  a  calm  summer  evening  we  were  seated  together 
on  our  terrace. 

On  the  preceding  day,  one  who  hardly  knew  my 
husband  had  come  to  ask  him  for  information  con- 
cerning his  life,  with  the  object  of  writing  his  biography. 
We  were  saying  to  each  other  how  inevitably  super- 
ficial and  incomplete  such  a  biography  was  bound  to 
be  ;  how  difficult  such  a  task  is  for  a  biographer,  even 
when  fully  informed ;  how  necessary  it  is  to  be 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  a  man  and  with  every 
phase  of  his  existence  in  order  to  give  a  truthful 
picture  of  his  character  and  of  his  life.  The  intimate 
side  is  bound  to  remain  more  or  less  closed  to  a 
stranger ;  in  order  to  decipher  it,  it  is  indispensable 
for  the  writer  of  a  biography  to  have  lived  in  complete 
communion  of  spirit  with  its  subject.  Our  long  past, 
spent  together,  fulfilled  all  these  conditions. 

My  husband's  whole  life  was  well  known  to  me. 
My  mother-in-law  had  often  told  me  vivid  stories  of 
his  childhood  ;  he  himself  willingly  talked  to  me 
about  his  past.  As  to  the  second  part  of  his  existence, 
we  had  lived  it  together. 

In  order  clearly  to  understand  his  character,  at 


xxii         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

once  both  complex  and  one-sided,  it  was  necessary  to 
possess  the  key  to  his  psychology.  In  his  life,  as  in 
his  work,  everything  was  so  closely  knitted  that  it 
was  impossible  to  understand  the  whole  without  know- 
ledge of  every  link  of  his  evolution. 

In  the  soothing  calm  of  that  summer  evening,  I 
submitted  my  reflections  to  him ;  he  warmly  en- 
couraged me,  and  I  then  and  there  resolved  to  write 
his  biography.  He  advised  me  to  relate  his  whole 
life  without  any  reticence,  considering  that  thus 
alone  does  a  biography  justify  its  existence.  That 
advice  was  to  guide  me,  within  limits,  for  to  dissect 
an  individual  life  without  touching  other  li ves  as  well 
is  not  always  possible. 

Numerous  were  the  difficulties  before  me ;  yet,  I 
considered  the  task  as  a  mission,  hoping,  in  spite  of 
all,  that  this  biography  would  present  a  true  picture 
of  the  life  and  evolution  of  Elie  Metchnikoff. 

We  talked  over  this  project  for  a  long  time.  The 
moon  now  appeared  above  the  trees,  the  soft  light 
tracing  silver  designs  through  the  ivy  leaves.  The 
lawn,  the  walnut  tree  in  front  of  the  house,  and  every- 
thing around  us  was  bathed  in  peaceful  radiance. 
Under  its  mysterious  charm,  we  ceased  to  speak,  we 
listened  to  the  inward  voices  of  nature  and  of  our 
own  hearts. 

In  youth,  vague  reveries  fill  our  minds ;  after  a  long 
life,  distant  memories.  ...  He  whose  life  I  describe 
is  no  more.  .  .  .  Without  his  help  my  task  could  not 
have  been  accomplished. 

Often,  when  he  was  not  too  tired,  he  would  sit 


INTRODUCTION  xxiii 

comfortably  in  his  armchair  and  recount  to  me  with 
his  usual  spirit  and  animation  some  period  or  episode 
of  his  past.  I  read  to  him  a  sketch  of  the  first  part  of 
this  biography  and  a  few  chapters  only  of  the  second, 
which  was  hardly  begun.  Thus  we  spent  many 
evenings,  never  to  be  forgotten. 

He  wanted  this  biography  written,  for  he  held  that 
the  evolution  of  a  mind,  of  a  character,  of  a  human 
life  is  always  an  interesting  psychological  document. 

During  his  long  and  painful  illness,  he  urged  me  to 
relate  the  "  last  chapter  "  of  his  life  ;  he  hoped  that 
his  attitude  in  the  face  of  death  might  diminish  the 
fear  of  it  in  others.  Also  he  considered  that  men  are 
rare  who  are  conscious  until  the  end  ;  even  rarer,  those 
who  reach  the  development  of  the  "  death-instinct." 
Therefore,  according  to  him,  an  example  would  be 
interesting. 

I  have  tried  to  accomplish  his  desire  within  the 
measure  of  my  strength. 

The  only  object  of  this  simple  and  truthful  story 
is  to  show  Elie  Metchnikoff  as  he  was,  a  help,  a  support, 
and  a  lesson  to  others. 

I  dedicate  this  book  to  his  dear  memory. 

OLGA  METCHNIKOFF. 

SfevBES,  15th  Dec.  1918. 


CHAPTER  I 

Panassovka — Metchnikoff's  parents — Country  life  in  Little  Russia. 

IN  Little  Russia,  in  the  steppe  region  of  the  province 
of  Kharkoff,  is  situated  the  land  of  Panassovka,  which 
belonged  to  the  Metchnikoff  family.  It  is  now  sold, 
it  has  passed  into  strange  hands,  but  it  was  once  the 
patrimony  of  Ilia  Ivanovitch,  father  of  Elie  Metch- 
nikoff. 

The  country  around  Panassovka  is  neither  beautiful 
nor  rich :  steppes,  hillocks  covered  with  low  grasses 
and  wild  wormwood  ;  a  poor  village,  meagre  vegeta- 
tion, no  river ;  the  whole  impression  is  a  melancholy 
one.  But  what  boundless  space  !  What  soft,  silver 
grey  colouring  !  And,  in  the  mornings  and  evenings, 
what  fresh,  cool  air,  and  what  a  delicious  aroma  of 
wormwood  leaves  ! 

The  house  of  Panassovka,  a  little  way  from  the 
village,  is  situated  on  a  hill  which  slopes  gently 
towards  a  pond.  It  is  like  that  of  any  other  middle- 
class  landowner  in  Little  Russia.  It  has  only  one 
storey  and  two  nights  of  steps  on  the  principal  fa9ade, 
opening  into  a  deserted  courtyard  with  no  view  but 
the  high  road.  On  the  other  side  a  semicircular 
terrace,  with  columns  and  steps,  leads  to  the  garden, 
composed  of  a  few  meagre  flower-beds  and  fruit  trees, 
reaching  to  the  pond.  On  the  bank,  a  distillery  and 
a  very  well-kept  kitchen  garden. 


2  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

The  house  is  arranged  inside  in  a  commonplace 
manner,  with  no  claim  to  beauty  or  comfort.  The 
furniture,  devoid  of  style  or  elegance,  neither  com- 
fortable nor  fashionable,  is  distributed  quite  inartistic- 
ally.  On  the  other  hand,  great  care  is  evident  in 
everything  that  pertains  to  the  table  :  the  cellars 
and  larders  are  full  of  provisions,  and  obviously  con- 
stitute the  principal  preoccupation  of  the  masters  of 
the  house.  And  indeed  the  hospitable  table  of  Panas- 
sovka  is  renowned  throughout  the  neighbourhood. 

According  to  a  very  fine  portrait,  painted  in  1835, 
Ilia  Ivanovitch  was  at  that  time  a  handsome  young 
man  with  regular  features,  tender  blue  eyes,  and  curly 
fair  hair.  He  was  very  intelligent,  but  his  mind  had 
that  sceptical  turn  which  prevents  men  from  taking  life 
seriously  and  which  paralyses  activity.  Moreover,  he 
had  an  Epicurean  temperament  and  was  in  the  army. 

He  had  married,  when  very  young,  Emilia  Lvovna 
Nevahovna,  sister  of  one  of  his  brother  officers  in 
the  Imperial  Guard,  a  very  attractive  and  unusually 
intelligent  girl.  Her  beauty  was  of  the  Jewish  type, 
with  splendid  dark  eyes,  and  she  had  a  bright  and 
lively  disposition  as  well  as  a  kind  and  tender  heart. 
Her  friends  called  her  "  Milotchka,"  which,  in  Russian, 
means  "  charming  "  ;  in  her  old  age  she  loved  to 
relate  that  the  great  Russian  poet,  Pushkin,  once  said 
to  her  at  a  ball,  "  How  well  your  name  suits  you, 
Mademoiselle  !  " 

After  his  marriage,  Ilia  Ivanovitch  remained  in 
Petersburg,  leading  a  merry  life  with  his  brothers-in- 
law,  and  giving  no  thought  to  the  future  ;  it  took 
him  but  a  few  years  at  that  rate  to  spend  the  whole 
of  his  wife's  inheritance.  And  three  children  were 
growing  up  whose  future  had  to  be  thought  of.  It  was 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  3 

then  that  Ilia  Ivanovitch's  distant  estate  was  remem- 
bered, away  in  a  remote  part  of  Little  Eussia.  What 
energy,  what  perseverance  had  to  be  displayed  by 
his  wife  before  she  could  persuade  him  to  take  refuge 
there  !  and  how  hard  it  must  have  seemed  to  the  gay 
officer  to  leave  the  capital  for  the  lonely  and  mono- 
tonous life  of  the  country !  However,  departure 
was  decided  upon.  The  two  boys,  Ivan  and  Leo, 
were  placed  in  a  school  at  Petersburg,  to  be  prepared 
for  the  Lycee  and  the  Law  School.  Ilia  Ivanovitch 
obtained  a  post  as  Remount  Officer  for  two  Guards 
regiments,  and  started  with  his  wife,  his  daughter, 
an  aunt,  and  a  younger  brother,  to  settle  down  in  the 
country. 

The  family  settled  at  first  in  the  old  Ivanovka 
house,  where  a  son,  Nicholas,  was  born.  Though  they 
wished  to  have  no  more  children,  one  more  child  was 
born  two  years  later,  on  the  16th  May  1845 — Elie 
Metchnikofl. 

The  Ivanovka  house  was  old  and  inconvenient ; 
Ilia  Ivanovitch  decided  to  build  a  new  one  at  the  other 
end  of  his  estate,  in  a  place  called  Panassovka,  which 
thus  became  the  family  home. 

Emilia  Lvovna  threw  herself  into  her  domestic 
occupations  with  her  usual  energy  and  ardour.  She 
was  anxious  to  improve  the  situation,  which  had 
become  precarious,  and  wished  at  the  same  time  to 
create  for  her  husband  an  environment  suited  to  his 
Epicurean  tastes.  Ilia  Ivanovitch  loved  cards  and 
the  table,  both  tastes  easy  to  satisfy  in  the  country, 
and  which  became  the  pivot  of  life  at  Panassovka. 
The  great  daily  problem  was  the  question  of  meals, 
and  long  conversations  had  to  take  place  with  the 
cook  and  with  the  housekeeper  concerning  catering. 


4  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Thanks  to  serfdom,  servants  were  very  numerous 
and  everything  could  be  manufactured  at  home. 
The  "  dievitshia  "  (maid-servants'  room)  was  crowded 
with  maids,  seamstresses,  needle-women,  washer- 
women, etc.,  under  the  direction  of  a  fat,  middle-aged 
woman  named  Duniasha.  She  wore  a  silk  kerchief 
on  her  head,  and  was  invariably  clothed  in  a  white 
dressing  jacket  and  a  brown  skirt  with  white  spots. 
A  regular  autocrat,  she  ruled  her  little  world  with  a 
rod  of  iron  ;  as  soon  as  her  heavy,  felt-slippered  steps 
were  heard,  the  maids  whispered  to  each  other, 
"  Avdotia  Maximo vna  !  "  conversations  ceased,  and 
every  one  became  absorbed  in  her  work. 

Among  the  male  retainers,  the  first  place  was  held 
by  Petrushka,  the  valet.  Careless  and  often  drunk, 
he  was  nevertheless  a  good  fellow ;  he  was  usually 
to  be  found  asleep  behind  the  screen  in  the  hall.  The 
upper  servants,  the  cook,  coachman,  and  others  left 
their  work  to  be  done  by  their  underlings,  the  scullery 
boy,  postilion,  page-boy,  etc.  In  fact,  everything 
followed  the  routine  usual  in  every  Russian  household 
in  the  time  of  serfdom. 

Emilia  Lvovna  directed  the  children's  education  ; 
her  personal  teaching  consisted  chiefly  in  tender 
indulgence,  but  it  was  she  who  chose  the  nurses  and 
teachers.  As  long  as  the  boys  were  small,  their 
great-aunt  Elena  Samoilovna  looked  after  them ; 
afterwards  they  were  handed  over  to  tutors  and 
professors.  Ilia  Ivanovitch's  activities  consisted  in 
buying  horses  at  fairs  and  in  studs  and  in  convoying 
them  to  Petersburg.  These  journeys  took  a  long  time, 
by  stages  and  relays  of  horses.  Ilia  Ivanovitch  took 
advantage  of  them  to  gamble  heavily  and  to  enjoy 
pleasures  which  the  country  did  not  offer. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  5 

Agriculture  was  very  restricted  at  Panassovka, 
for  the  property  consisted  mostly  of  pasture  land  for 
horses  and  sheep.  The  younger  brother,  Dmitri 
Ivanovitch,  had  undertaken  the  management  of  the 
estate.  He  was  entirely  devoted  to  the  family  of  his 
elder  brother,  whom  he  had  followed  into  the  country. 
Though  only  a  few  years  younger,  he  used  the  respect- 
ful second  person  plural  in  speaking  to  Ilia  Ivano- 
vitch, whilst  the  latter  said  "  thou  "  to  him.  Dmitri 
Ivanovitch  was  tall,  thin,  and  taciturn,  a  silent  pipe- 
smoker.  The  lively  Emilia  Lvovna  often  said  to 
him,  "  But  why  do  you  never  talk,  Mitienka  ?  "  To 
which  he  invariably  answered,  "It  is  not  every  one 
who  is  as  talkative  as  you  are,  Emilia  Lvovna."  Yet 
they  were  on  the  best  of  terms.  Dmitri  Ivanovitch 
would  have  gone  through  fire  for  his  sister-in-law, 
as  she  well  knew.  She  had  the  utmost  confidence  in 
him,  and  depended  upon  his  support  in  every  difficult 
circumstance. 

At  Panassovka  the  men  spent  the  greater  part 
of  the  day,  and  often  even  of  the  night,  in  playing 
cards  ;  games  were  organised  between  neighbours  and 
relations,  and  that  occupation  was  considered  most 
important.  Meals  were  prolonged  indefinitely ;  every- 
thing was  served  in  abundance  and  eaten  with  a  con- 
noisseur's appreciation,  each  dish  being  discussed. 
After  the  meal  was  over,  the  cook  would  make  his 
daily  appearance,  and  the  next  day's  menu  was  drawn 
up  by  the  whole  party.  After  a  siesta,  gambling  was 
resumed.  Thus  the  days  went  by  in  the  cult  of  good 
cheer  and  of  cards,  interspersed  with  conversations 
about  horses  and  sometimes  about  politics. 

By  this  time  Hia  Ivanovitch  was  beginning  to 
become  bald  and  obese.  It  is  difficult  to  define  what 


6  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

was  his  inner  life  ;  not  even  to  his  wife  did  he  ever 
speak  of  it.  As  to  his  children,  he  petted  them  when 
they  were  small,  but  as  they  grew  up,  their  intercourse 
with  him  was  limited  to  kissing  his  hand  morning  and 
evening.  He  was  not  indifferent  to  their  welfare, 
but  left  it  entirely  to  his  wife's  active  solicitude. 
The  children  were  on  very  different  terms  with  their 
mother ;  not  only  did  she  spoil  them,  but  also  always 
eagerly  shared  all  their  childish  interests.  Owing  to 
that,  and  to  her  bright  and  affectionate  disposition, 
they  looked  upon  her  as  their  intimate  friend  and 
confidante. 

Masters  and  servants  were  on  good  terms,  rela- 
tions between  them  were  even  remarkably  human, 
according  to  the  ideas  of  the  time,  and  in  spite  of 
certain  customs  inherent  to  serfdom.  For  instance, 
the  younger  maids  were  punished  by  having  their 
faces  slapped  and  their  hair  pulled.  Even  the  kindly 
and  peaceable  Dmitri  Ivanovitch  would  soundly  box 
his  valet's  ears  when  he  found  him  drunk.  At  that 
time  such  things  were  not  thought  cruel  or  humiliating, 
but  looked  upon  as  a  paternal  correction.  The 
peasants  had  confidence  in  their  "  barin  "  (master) 
and  consulted  him  or  appealed  to  his  generosity  when 
in  trouble. 

Ilia  Ivanovitch  never  opposed  the  free  choice  of 
his  serfs  in  matrimony,  a  rare  tolerance  at  that  time. 
According  to  custom  every  betrothed  couple  came  to 
salute  him,  the  young  man  in  his  Sunday  clothes  and 
a  fine,  bright-coloured  scarf,  the  girl  wearing  an  em- 
broidered bodice  and  a  head-dress  of  many-coloured 
ribbons.  They  knelt  before  him  and  bowed  three 
times  to  the  ground,  then  offered  him  sacramental 
loaves,  hard  and  shaped  like  pine  cones,  on  beautifully 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  7 

worked  diapers.  Ilia  Ivanovitch  and  Emilia  Lvovna 
blessed  the  bride  and  bridegroom  with  "  ikons," 
embraced  them,  and  gave  them  a  sum  of  money  for 
the  wedding. 

The  Metchnikofls  were  liked  by  their  peasants 
and  looked  upon  as  good  masters. 


CHAPTER  II 

Metchnikoff's  brothers  and  sister— Childish  characteristics. 

THE  two  elder  children,  Ivan  and  Leo,  were  educated 
at  Petersburg,  whilst  Katia,  the  only  daughter,  was 
brought  up  at  home.  Like  all  other  girls  of  noble 
family,  she  was  educated  with  the  object  of  being 
suitably  married.  She  was  a  slender,  pretty  brunette, 
like  her  mother,  but  less  beautiful.  Though  sensitive 
and  intelligent,  she  interested  herself  in  nothing  but 
the  reading  of  French  novels.  There  was  a  great 
difference  in  age  between  Katia  and  her  little  brothers, 
whilst  there  were  only  two  years  between  them. 
Kolia  (Nicholas)  was  the  old  aunt's  favourite,  a  fine, 
handsome  boy  with  velvety  black  eyes ;  his  slow  and 
grave  movements  had  earned  for  him  the  nickname  of 
"  Peaceful  Papa." 

The  youngest  of  the  family,  Ilia  (Elie),  on  the 
contrary,  was  full  of  life  and  spirits.  Fair  and  slender, 
with  silky  hair  and  a  diaphanous,  pink  and  white 
complexion,  he  had  small,  grey-blue  eyes,  full  of 
kindliness  and  sparkle.  '  Very  highly  strung  and  im- 
pressionable, his  temper  was  easily  roused,  and  he  was 
so  restless  that  he  went  by  the  name  of  "  quicksilver." 
He  always  wished  to  see  everything,  to  know  every- 
thing, and  found  his  way  everywhere.  When,  after  a 
long  silence,  there  was  a  sudden  outburst  of  many 
voices  around  the  card-tables,  he  would  rush  to  the 
g 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  9 

drawing-room,  saying,  "  Are  they  going  to  fight  ?  " 
He  ran  about  the  house  all  day,  following  his  mother 
as  she  attended  to  her  various  duties  ;  he  examined 
the  provisions,  tasted  everything,  and  even  went  to 
the  "  dievitshia  "  to  see  what  the  maids  were  doing. 
He  tried  to  sew  or  to  embroider,  exasperated  every- 
body, and  ended  by  being  turned  out.  He  would  then 
look  for  something  else  to  do,  go  to  see  whether  the 
table  was  laid,  inquire  about  the  menu,  and  ask  the 
queerest  questions.  He  could  only  be  kept  quiet 
when  his  curiosity  was  awakened  by  the  observation 
of  some  natural  object  such  as  an  insect  or  a  butterfly 
that  he  was  trying  to  catch,  or  by  watching  the 
"  grown-ups  "  at  their  card  games.  But,  of  all  things, 
music  fascinated  him  most,  and  he  would  remain  for 
hours  sitting  by  the  piano  listening  without  a  move- 
ment. He  was  very  much  spoilt  by  his  mother,  who 
had  a  weakness  for  her  Benjamin,  and  who  also  wished 
to  make  up  for  the  very  obvious  preference  shown  for 
Kolia  by  the  great-aunt. 

Moreover,  Ilia  was  a  frail  little  boy  and  often 
suffered  from  his  eyes  ;  the  doctor  advised  that  he 
should  not  be  allowed  to  cry  or  to  rub  his  eyes,  and, 
in  order  to  avoid  this,  he  was  permitted  to  have  his 
own  way  in  everything.  He  was  much  too  intelligent 
not  to  understand  the  advantage  that  the  situation 
offered  and  was  quick  to  profit  by  it.  In  the  face  of 
the  least  semblance  of  refusal  or  reproach,  he  would 
begin  to  rub  his  eyes  and  announce  in  a  whining  tone 
that  he  was  going  to  cry.  He  was  therefore  very  much 
spoilt  and  very  capricious  ;  his  mother  said  he  was 
"  neurotic  "  ;  his  sister,  who  often  had  differences 
with  him,  called  him  a  "  little  beast."  In  reality,  Hia 
was  very  good-hearted,  tender,  and  loving ;  he  was 


10  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

affectionate,  especially  with  his  mother,  and  could 
always  be  managed  by  an  appeal  to  his  feelings.  But 
if  he  was  sensitive  to  kindness,  he  was  equally  so  to 
the  least  injustice.  He  could  not  forgive  his  great- 
aunt  the  predilection  which  she  exhibited  on  every 
occasion  for  Kolia  ;  for  instance,  at  table,  she  would 
choose  tit-bits  for  him,  and  Ilia  observed  with  bitter- 
ness that  she  always  reserved  the  chicken's  breast  for 
her  favourite.  Every  time  a  chicken  was  served, 
poor  Ilia  followed  the  dish  round  the  table  with 
anxious  eyes,  and  she  invariably  placed  the  coveted 
morsel  in  his  brother's  plate. 

When  the  day  was  over,  Ilia  was  put  into  his  little 
bed  and  told  to  "  say  his  prayers  and  go  to  sleep." 
But  he  did  not  obey  at  once  :  after  a  thousand  merry 
tricks,  his  eyelids  would  begin  to  close  in  spite  of  him  ; 
then  he  would  make  up  his  mind  to  kneel  and  say  his 
prayers,  folding  his  little  hands  :  "  Lord,  keep  and 
preserve  father,  mother,  great —  But  suddenly 

remembering  the  latter's  injustice  towards  him,  he 
would  correct  himself  hastily,  "  No,  not  great-aunt, 
she  is  too  unkind !  "  and  continue,  "  My  sister,  my 
brothers,  everybody,  and  myself,  little  Ilia."  Still  he 
did  not  go  to  sleep  immediately  ;  a  nervous  child,  he 
was  frightened  of  being  alone  ;  now  and  then  he 
would  lift  his  heavy  lids  to  see  if  the  maid  was  still 
there.  Sometimes  the  latter,  thinking  he  had  gone 
to  sleep,  would  leave  the  room  on  tiptoe.  Hia, 
seeing  her  no  more,  would  start,  raise  his  head  and, 
stretching  his  thin  neck,  send  an  anxious  look  around 
the  room,  faintly  lighted  by  a  night-light.  The  vacil- 
lating flame  threw  trembling  and  dancing  shadows. 
Seized  with  intense  terror,  he  would  hide  his  face  in 
his  pillow  and  scream  with  all  his  might.  Avdotia 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  11 

Maximovna  would  then  rush  to  soothe  him  and 
soundly  rate  the  servant  girl,  "  Are  you  not  ashamed 
to  leave  a  noble  child  all  alone  ?  "  Hia  would  then 
go  on  sobbing  for  a  little  while,  but,  reassured  after  all, 
would  presently  sink  into  deep,  childish  sleep. 


CHAPTER  III 

Journey  to  Slaviansk — The  coach  attacked  by  peasants. 

IN  1850  the  children  were  taken  to  the  baths  of 
Slaviansk.  On  a  warm  summer  day  the  heavy 
"  berlin  "  coach,  drawn  by  six  horses  with  a  postilion, 
rolled  along  the  high  road,  across  the  steppes,  followed 
at  a  distance  by  a  "  tarantass."  l 

In  the  spacious,  antique  coach,  with  its  dusty 
hood,  sat  Emilia  Lvovna,  with  her  three  children  ; 
the  valet,  Petrushka,  dozed  on  the  box,  next  to  the 
coachman.  The  tarantass  was  occupied  by  Dmitri 
Ivanovitch  and  a  cousin. 

The  heat  was  oppressive.  At  the  start  every  one 
was  excited  ;  Emilia  Lvovna  was  trying  to  remember 
if  anything  had  been  forgotten  and  was  discussing 
with  Katia  the  details  of  their  installation  at  Slaviansk. 
The  boys  hung  out  of  the  windows,  gazing  at  the 
horses,  at  the  tarantass,  and  making  all  sorts  of 
comments.  Ilia  was  so  restless  and  talkative  that 
he  was  constantly  being  told,  "  Do  be  quiet !  Keep 
still !  " 

By  degrees,  however,  children  and  "  grown-ups  " 
began  to  feel  drowsy,  owing  to  the  monotony  of  the 
road,  the  heat,  and  the  swinging  of  the  carriage.  The 
tarantass  had  disappeared,  for  Dmitri  Ivanovitch 
wished  to  visit  an  aunt  whose  house  was  not  far  from 

1  Ungainly  open  carriage  on  high  wheels  and  without  springs. 
12 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  13 

the  road.  The  outline  of  a  forest  was  now  seen  on 
the  horizon  ;  it  came  nearer  and  nearer,  and  soon  the 
coach  stopped  before  the  forest  inn.  Everybody  woke 
up,  the  children  were  delighted  to  be  able  to  run  about 
and  stretch  their  limbs.  They  begged  their  mother 
to  let  them  go  into  the  forest  whilst  the  horses  were 
resting,  and  obtained  permission  to  go,  but  not  too 
far,  and  with  Petrushka. 

They  ate  an  appetising  lunch  at  the  inn  and  the 
children  ran  off  at  a  gallop.  Everything  delighted 
them,  the  underwood,  grass  patches,  ravines,  and 
mysterious  paths.  But  they  had  hardly  entered  the 
forest  when  they  heard  a  sinister,  confused  rumour 
in  the  distance  ;  they  stopped  to  listen,  and  recog- 
nised the  voices  of  a  tumultuous  crowd.  The  chil- 
dren's joyous  excitement  fell ;  frightened  and  docile, 
they  hastened  to  return  to  the  inn,  from  which  Emilia 
Lvovna,  looking  anxiously  out  of  a  window,  was 
making  urgent  signs  to  them  to  return.  The  coach 
was  still  standing  without  horses,  and,  a  little  farther 
ofi,  the  latter  were  surrounded  by  a  crowd  of  peasants, 
of  whom  many  were  completely  drunk.  They  shouted 
vociferously,  and  closely  pressed  the  coachman  and 
the  postilion,  threatening  to  confiscate  the  horses  and 
detain  the  travellers  if  they  were  not  given  a  ransom 
of  a  thousand  roubles. 

Terrified,  the  children  clung  to  their  distracted 
mother  ;  Ilia  felt  her  trembling,  and  his  own  little  heart 
fluttered  like  a  bird  that  has  been  caught.  The 
drunken  peasants  appeared  to  him  like  monstrous 
ogres  or  brigands  about  to  capture,  perhaps  kill,  his 
family  and  himself  ;  he  could  hardly  keep  back  his 
tears.  Already  the  peasants  had  bound  the  coach- 
man and  the  postilion  and  were  taking  away  the 


14  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

horses.  Clinging  close  to  each  other,  the  mother  and 
children  listened  anxiously  ;  they  thought  again  and 
again  that  they  could  hear  the  bells  of  the  tarantass. 
At  last  it  appeared  in  the  distance,  and  the  children 
joyously  whispered,  "  There  they  are !  "  They 
hastened  to  inform  Dmitri  Ivanovitch  of  what  had 
happened.  He  at  once  went  with  his  cousin  towards 
the  crowd,  and  negotiations  were  opened,  but  for  a 
long  time  without  result. 

At  last  the  cousin  had  a  happy  idea  ;  he  declared 
he  would  go  back  to  his  aunt's  house  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood and  borrow  the  thousand  roubles  from  her. 
The  peasants  consented  to  let  him  go  alone,  keeping 
the  other  travellers  as  hostages.  After  a  time,  which 
to  the  children  seemed  endless,  the  sound  of  the 
tarantass  bells  was  again  heard,  accompanied  this 
time  by  numerous  heavy  footsteps,  and  the  vehicle 
reappeared,  escorted  by  a  company  of  soldiers  com- 
manded by  two  officers.  Instead  of  going  to  his 
aunt's,  the  cousin  had  gone  to  a  neighbouring  military 
camp  and  was  bringing  assistance. 

There  was  a  sudden  change  of  scene.  Emilia 
Lvovna  and  Katia  furtively  made  the  sign  of  the 
cross.  Ilia  had  let  go  of  his  mother's  hand  and  was 
no  longer  clinging  to  her,  but,  stretching  his  head 
forward  and  opening  his  eyes  wide,  eagerly  waited  to 
see  what  was  going  to  happen.  "  Now,"  he  thought, 
"  we  shall  not  be  captured  ;  it  is  their  turn ;  I  am 
glad !  "  And,  perhaps  for  the  first  time  in  his  life, 
his  little  heart  was  moved  by  feelings  of  hatred. 

In  the  meanwhile  a  repulsive  scene  was  going  on : 
a  hand-to-hand  struggle,  invectives  and  screams.  The 
peasants  were  securely  bound.  Men  and  women 
hastened  from  a  neighbouring  village ;  one  of  the 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  15 

women  slapped  an  officer's  face.  Furious,  he  ordered 
the  soldiers  to  fill  her  mouth  with  earth  ;  she  was 
thrown  on  the  ground  ;  the  new  arrivals  in  their 
turn  attacked  the  soldiers,  and  a  regular  battle  raged. 

Ilia  was  alarmed,  shaken,  and  profoundly  disgusted 
with  that  exhibition  of  brutality.  The  coachman  and 
postilion,  their  bonds  unloosed,  hastened  to  put  the 
horses  in,  and  whilst  reprisals  were  still  going  on,  the 
family  hurried  away.  They  reached  Slaviansk  with- 
out further  trouble,  excitedly  talking  over  their  adven- 
ture. This  episode  was  the  first  deep  and  definite 
impression  which  remained  on  little  Ilia's  mind  ;  it 
struck  him  so  much  that  he  kept  the  memory  of  it 
during  his  whole  life. 

From  that  moment  he  held  crowds,  violence,  and 
all  manifestations  of  brute  force  in  the  utmost  horror, 
whatever  their  cause  might  be. 


CHAPTER  IV 

Departure  for  Kharkoff — Town  life. 

THE  following  year  was  to  be  spent  at  Kharkoff. 
Katia  was  now  seventeen  and  her  marriage  had  to  be 
contemplated. 

The  boys'  life  was  still  quite  a  childish  one,  made 
up  chiefly  of  games  and  mischief.  Kolia  had  been 
taught  to  read  by  the  great-aunt ;  Ilia  had  learnt  by 
himself,  asking  people  now  and  then  for  the  name  of 
some  letter.  He  was  able  to  read  fluently  quite  early. 

The  departure  for  KharkofE  was  a  great  event, 
prepared  long  beforehand.  The  children,  delighted 
at  the  prospect  of  a  change,  impatiently  waited  for 
the  moment  to  start.  At  last  every  one  was  seated 
in  the  coaches  and,  saying  to  the  coachman,  "  Off ! 
God  keep  us,"  they  started  to  drive  along  the  high 
road  through  the  steppes. 

Life  at  KharkofE  was  very  much  the  same  as 
at  Panassovka,  with  social  elements  added.  More- 
over, the  children's  liberty  was  somewhat  restricted. 
Already  on  the  journey  they  were  given  to  understand 
that,  in  a  town,  they  could  not  go  out  alone,  nor 
shout  in  the  streets,  nor  point  at  people  and  things 
with  their  finger,  and  that  they  should  have  to  make 
less  noise,  even  in  the  house.  For  the  first  time  they 
unconsciously  realised  that  their  family  was  not  the 
centre  of  the  universe,  that  there  were  many  others 

16 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  17 

who  also  had  to  be  taken  into  account.  Ilia  did  not 
welcome  this  discovery. 

The  flat  occupied  by  the  Metchnikoffe  was  on  the 
first  floor,  above  that  of  the  owner  of  the  house. 
One  day  when  the  children  were  running  about, 
making  a  fearful  noise,  some  one  came  up  to  say  that 
the  landlady  was  ill  and  begged  that  the  noise  should 
cease.  Ilia,  interrupted  in  the  midst  of  a  game, 
became  furiously  angry ;  in  his  rage  he  seized  a 
whistle,  and  stooping  to  a  crack  in  the  floor,  whistled 
with  all  his  might.  It  was  only  with  much  difficulty 
that  he  was  induced  to  stop  and  to  calm  himself.1 

The  children's  horizon  soon  widened ;  Dmitri 
Ivanovitch  took  them  to  the  theatre  and  a  new 
and  fantastic  world  opened  out  to  them.  The  very 
next  day  they  attempted  a  performance  of  the  play 
they  had  seen ;  soon,  on  Kolia's  suggestion,  they 
began  to  compose  plays  for  themselves.  Kolia  wrote 
a  drama  entitled  "  Burning  Tea,"  in  which  the  hero 
having  offered  his  friend  tea  that  was  too  hot,  the 
latter  burnt  his  tongue ;  a  duel  ensued,  etc.,  etc. 
Ilia  hastened  to  follow  his  brother's  example.  He 
composed  something  in  the  same  style,  but  even  more 
absurd.  Having  realised  that  it  was  so,  he  gave  up 
literature.  That  period  was  for  him  a  series  of  dis- 
appointments which  perhaps  helped  to  lead  him  to 
the  path  he  was  ultimately  to  follow.  His  brother, 
following  the  "  grown-ups'  "  example,  played  cards 
with  other  boys  or  with  the  maids.  Ilia  attempted 
to  do  the  same,  but  his  nervousness  left  him  no  self- 
control  ;  he  lost  continually  and  games  generally  ended 
in  quarrels  and  tears  ;  he  became  disgusted  with 

1  Metchnikoff  himself  insisted  upon  the  recital  of  this  episode,  for  which 
he  had  felt  some  remorse.  He  considered  that,  in  a  biography,  disagree- 
able traits  were  not  to  be  omitted. 


18  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

cards  for  the  rest  of  his  life.  Kolia  was  fond  of 
muscular  exercises,  such  as  gymnastics,  wrestling,  etc. 
Ilia,  younger  and  therefore  weaker,  was  constantly 
humiliated,  and  his  pride  kept  him  away  from  physical 
amusements.  Thus,  by  means  of  elimination,  he 
became  gradually  isolated  from  surrounding  influences. 
But,  at  that  time,  no  new  element  had  intervened  in 
his  daily  life  and  he  spent  his  existence  in  the  gentle 
warmth  of  his  mother's  tenderness,  absorbed  in  his 
childish  games  and  studies. 


CHAPTER  V 

Leo  Metchnikoff's  illness— Private  tutors— Botanical  studies— 
A  memorable  birthday. 

IN  1851,  in  the  middle  of  the  winter,  the  Metchni- 
koffs  heard  that  Leo,  their  second  son,  was  suffering 
from  hip-disease,  and  the  doctors  advised  that  he  should 
be  taken  away  from  Petersburg.  Poor  Emilia  Lvovna 
was  in  great  despair  and  shed  many  tears ;  her 
brother-in-law,  Dmitri  Ivanovitch,  calmly  announced 
that  he  was  going  to  fetch  Leo.  He  took  his  great 
fur  coat,  his  fur  cap  and  fur-lined  boots,  and  started 
that  very  day  for  Petersburg  by  coach.  He  took  but 
the  necessary  time  to  go  and  to  bring  Leo  back,  only 
stopping  at  relays  to  change  horses. 

The  boy  was  then  thirteen  years  old,  handsome, 
gifted,  and  intelligent ;  he  walked  with  crutches,  but 
his  general  health  seemed  good,  and  it  was  decided 
that  he  should  work  at  home  to  prepare  for  the  Lycee, 
under  the  tuition  of  students  as  tutors.  Thus  a  new 
element  was  introduced  into  the  family  life. 

In  1853  Leo  had  as  a  tutor  a  student  named 
Hodounof ,  a  very  intelligent  young  man,  who  wished 
not  merely  to  teach  him  but  to  impart  to  him  the 
love  of  science.  Leo  was  extremely  gifted  and  worked 
with  great  facility,  but  he  lacked  concentration  and 
was  therefore  somewhat  superficial.  This  cooled  his 
tutor's  enthusiasm,  whilst  on  the  other  hand  he 

19 


20  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

became  more  and  more  interested  in  little  Ilia.  It 
was  in  the  course  of  country  walks  that  they  were 
drawn  together.  Hodounof  used  to  take  Leo  for 
walks  in  order  to  study  the  local  flora,  and  Ilia  came 
out  with  them,  at  first  for  the  sake  of  the  exercise. 
But  soon  he  became  interested  in  the  flowers  and 
showed  so  much  taste  for  botany  that  he  attracted 
Hodounof 's  notice  ;  soon  the  tutor's  interest  became 
concentrated  on  the  little  boy  and  he  gave  him  serious 
attention. 

It  was  with  a  real  enthusiasm  that  Ilia  gathered 
and  studied  plants  ;  he  soon  became  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  the  local  flora.  He  thought  himself 
very  learned  already  and  wrote  memoirs  on  botany. 
Passionately  fond  of  teaching,  he  used  to  offer  all  his 
pocket-money  to  his  brothers  and  other  children  to 
induce  them  to  hear  lectures  which  he  gave  them. 
His  vocation  was  fixed  from  that  moment.  He  was 
then  eight  years  old. 

When  the  family  returned  to  Kharkoff  he  spent 
all  he  had  in  buying  books  on  natural  history,  which 
he  read  with  passionate  interest.  These  contained 
many  things  that  he  could  not  understand,  but  his 
curiosity  was  all  the  greater.  When  he  was  eleven 
years  old  his  passion  for  natural  history  almost  cost 
him  his  life.  While  fishing  for  hydra  in  a  small  pond 
he  was  so  eager  that  he  fell  into  the  water  and  was 
only  pulled  out  with  great  difficulty. 

That  particular  day,  his  own  and  his  father's  name 
day,  was  nearly  fatal  to  him,  not  only  through  water 
but  through  fire.  It  was  a  family  custom  to  hold  a 
great  gathering  of  friends  and  relations  at  Panassovka 
on  St.  Elias's  day.  Preparations  for  the  feast  began 
days  beforehand ;  the  whole  household  was  in  a  turmoil. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  21 

On  that  particular  St.  Elias's  day,  so  many  guests 
came  to  Panassovka  that  there  was  not  enough  room 
in  the  house  to  accommodate  them  all,  and  the 
children  were  transferred  to  a  pavilion  outside  the 
house. 

Whilst  in  the  drawing-room  people  were  talking 
and  playing  cards,  the  servants  were  holding  rejoicings 
of  their  own.  Towards  night-time  the  majority  of 
the  coachmen  and  footmen  brought  by  the  guests 
were  completely  drunk ;  a  cigarette  imprudently 
thrown  on  some  hay  started  a  fire.  Soon  the  stables 
were  ablaze  and  many  horses  perished  in  the  flames, 
in  spite  of  every  effort  to  save  them.  Presently  the 
wind  changed  in  the  direction  of  the  pavilion  and  the 
thatched  roof  caught  fire.  There  was  a  rush  to  save 
the  children,  who  were  with  much  difficulty  taken  out 
through  a  window. 

In  spite  of  intense  terror,  Ilia's  first  thought  was 
for  his  baby  nephew,  the  son  of  his  sister,  who  had 
then  been  married  a  year  ;  he  ran  in  affright  all  over 
the  house  searching  for  the  child,  and  only  became 
calm  again  after  he  had  ascertained  that  it  had  been 
carried  out  into  the  garden. 

Katia  being  married  there  was  now  no  reason  to 
spend  the  winter  in  the  town.  The  father  and  mother 
therefore  remained  at  Panassovka  and  Dmitri  Ivano- 
vitch  took  the  boys  to  Kharkoff ,  where  they  entered  the 
Lycee.  They  had  been  well  prepared  by  their  tutors, 
and  moreover  spoke  French  and  a  little  German, 
having  had  special  teachers  for  these  languages. 
Their  French  tutor,  M.  Garnier,  was  gay,  boastful, 
and  pretentious;  his  idea  of  teaching  them  French 
literature  was  to  memorise  Beranger's  chansons.  He 
was  passionately  fond  of  shooting  and  gave  to  that 


22  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

sport  as  much  time  as  he  could,  greatly  to  the  detri- 
ment of  his  pupils'  studies,  for  they  were  not  allowed 
to  accompany  him  for  fear  of  an  accident.  Their 
mother,  perhaps  on  account  of  her  weak  heart,  was 
so  nervous  that  they  were  discouraged  from  any 
sporting  tastes.  The  German  tutor  also  neglected 
the  children :  his  favourite  occupation  consisted  in 
drinking  beer.  On  one  occasion  he  gave  so  much  to 
little  Ilia  that  the  boy  conceived  a  lifelong  distaste 
for  beer.  Ilia  took  advantage  of  his  tutors'  indiffer- 
ence to  devote  himself  to  his  favourite  study  of 
natural  history.  His  vocation  was  so  obvious  that  it 
could  not  be  mistaken.  It  seems  a  strange  thing 
that  a  passion  for  science  should  have  developed  in 
so  inappropriate  an  environment.  Evidently  the 
first  impulse  was  given  by  Hodounof,  but,  if  his 
influence  stimulated  this  passion,  it  cannot  have 
created  it.  This  vocation  probably  had  a  deeper 
source,  and  in  order  to  discover  it  we  should  perhaps 
look  back  into  the  antecedents  of  the  Metchnikoff 
family. 


CHAPTER  VI 

Ancestors  of  the  MetchnikoS  family — The  Great  Spatar — Leo 
Nevahovitoh. 

THE  Metchnikoff  family  made  no  show  of  family 
pride ;  one  old  aunt,  however,  was  extremely  proud 
of  one  of  their  ancestors,  the  Great  "Spatar"  (sword- 
bearer).  The  following  is  the  account  given  of  this 
ancestor  by  E.  Picot,  after  a  Moldavian  chronicle.1 

Few  men  led  such  an  adventurous  lif  e  or  made  themselves 
glorious  through  such  varied  gifts  as  did  Nicholas  Spatar 
Milescu. 

His  name  is  connected  with  the  history  of  Moldavian,  Greek, 
Russian,  and  Chinese  literature.  His  origin,  his  talents,  his 
crime,  the  mutilation  he  suffered,  his  audacious  journey  across 
the  whole  of  Asia  to  reach  Pekin,  the  valuable  information 
which  he  gathered  during  his  embassy  at  the  Court  of  the 
"  Son  of  Heaven,"  everything  conspires  to  excite  curiosity 
concerning  him. 

Spatar  was  born  in  Moldavia  in  1625.  While  yet 
very  young  he  went  to  Constantinople,  where  he 
studied  theology,  philosophy,  history  ancient  and 
modern,  Greek,  Latin,  Slavonic  and  Turkish.  He 
afterwards  went  to  Italy  to  study  natural  science  and 
mathematics.  On  his  return  to  Moldavia  he  soon 
became  known  for  his  erudition,  acquired  great 

1  Chronicle  of  John  Necidua. 


24  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

influence,  and  became  much  appreciated  at  Court. 
Owing  to  clever  political  intrigues  he  preserved  the 
simultaneous  favour  of  several  enemy  princes,  one 
of  whom,  Stepanita,  covered  him  with  benefits  and 
honours.  Nevertheless,  Spatar  wrote  to  Constantine 
Bassarab,  in  Poland,  advising  him  to  come  and  to 
overthrow  Stepanita 's  throne.  He  sent  his  letter 
inside  a  hollow  cane  ;  Constantine,  however,  did  not 
wish  to  launch  himself  into  such  an  adventure,  and 
indignantly  sent  the  hollow  cane  and  the  letter  to 
Stepanita  himself.  At  first  the  prince,  naturally 
angry,  thought  of  having  Spatar  executed  ;  he  spared 
his  life  for  the  sake  of  his  talents,  but  condemned  him 
to  have  the  tip  of  his  nose  cut  off.  Spatar  went  to 
Germany,  where,  says  the  naive  chronicler,  a  doctor 
made  his  nose  grow  again.  He  came  back  to  Mol- 
davia for  a  short  time  and  then  went  to  Russia. 
Thanks  to  his  knowledge  of  languages,  he  was  made 
an  interpreter  at  the  Court  of  the  Tsar  Alexis 
Michailovitch,  and  was  the  first  tutor  of  his  son 
Peter  the  Great,  whom  he  taught  to  read  and  to 
write. 

In  1674  the  Tsar  Alexis  Michailovitch  entrusted 
Spatar  with  a  mission  in  China,  where  he  was  to  open 
negotiations  with  a  view  to  commercial  and  political 
relations  between  Russia  and  China.  In  the  course 
of  his  journey  Spatar  carefully  collected  all  possible 
information  concerning  the  countries  he  traversed. 
He  thus  gathered  much  interesting  geographical 
knowledge  and  highly  important  data  concerning  the 
commercial  value  of  Asiatic  rivers,  and  specially  the 
Amour  river. 

At  Pekin,  Spatar  rapidly  learnt  the  Chinese  lan- 
guage, occupied  for  three  years  the  post  of  ambassador 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  25 

in  China,  and  returned  to  Russia  bringing  back  most 
valuable  information  and  many  rich  presents  given 
him  by  the  Emperor  of  China. 

All  this  had  excited  the  jealousy  of  the  Muscovite 
courtiers  ;  they  took  advantage  of  the  coincidence 
between  the  death  of  the  Tsar  and  Spatar's  return  to 
deprive  him  of  his  treasures  and  to  have  him  exiled 
to  Siberia.  But,  when  Peter  the  Great  ascended  the 
throne,  Spatar  succeeded  in  making  a  letter  reach  him 
relating  his  misfortunes,  and  the  Tsar  recalled  him, 
gave  him  back  his  property,  and  showered  honours 
upon  him.  Spatar  again  became  interpreter  of  the 
Embassy ;  Peter  consulted  him  in  all  Far-Eastern 
questions,  and  gave  him  confidential  documents  to 
translate  into  foreign  languages. 

Spatar's  literary  activity  was  vast  and  varied. 
He  translated  the  Bible  from  the  Greek  into  Rouman- 
ian ;  he  wrote  a  chronicle  on  the  origin  of  Roumania, 
articles  on  theology,  a  Greco-Latin-Russian  dictionary, 
and  a  work  entitled  Arithmetic,  in  which  he  discussed, 
by  means  of  numbers  and  figures,  questions  of  Theo- 
logy, Philosophy,  and  Ethics.  He  dealt  in  his  writings 
with  Art,  Archaeology,  and  History;  described  his 
Siberian  travels,  China  and  the  Amour  river,  and  made 
numerous  translations  of  diplomatic  documents.  His 
erudition  was  such  that  his  contemporaries  appealed 
to  his  knowledge  as  they  would  have  consulted  an 
encyclopaedia. 

He  had  married  a  Muscovite  and  had  several  sons 
and  grandsons.  Three  of  his  nephews  came  from 
Moldavia  to  join  him  and  entered  the  Russian  army. 
He  died  in  1714  at  the  age  of  80.  Such  is  the  history 
of  the  "  Great  Spatar." 

The  following  notice  is  to  be  found  in  Brockhaus 


26  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

and  Effrone's  Encyclopaedia :  "  The  Metchnikoffs  are 
a  noble  family,  descended  from  a  Moldavian  Boyar, 
the  Spatar  (sword-bearer)  Joury  Stepanovitch,1  who 
came  to  Russia  with  Prince  Cant  emir.  Peter  the 
Great  gave  this  Boyar  large  land  estates.  His  son 
took  the  name  of  Metchnikoff  (Russian  translation 
of  Sword-bearer)." 

The  following  generations  included  military  men 
chiefly,  one  sailor,  one  mining  engineer,  one  senator, 
but  no  scientific  men. 

On  the  mother's  side,  Elie  Metchnikoff  had  no 
ancestor  as  remarkable  or  as  romantic  as  the  great 
Spatar.  Yet  his  grandfather,  Leo  Nevahovitch,  was 
a  very  intelligent  and  highly  cultivated  man.  He  had 
been  Farmer-General  for  tobacco  in  Poland.  A  Jew 
by  race,  he  took  to  heart  the  persecutions  directed 
against  his  co-religionists  and  defended  them  in 
literary  newspaper  articles.  Nevertheless  he  accepted 
indirect  advice  from  Alexander  I.  and  let  himself  be 
baptized.  He  adopted  the  Lutheran  religion  and  his 
children  were  brought  up  in  it. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  Polish  Revolution  in  1830, 
Nevahovitch  was  warned  that  his  house  was  about 
to  be  sacked ;  the  warning  reached  him  as  he  was 
peacefully  enjoying  a  theatrical  performance.  He 
hurried  to  prepare  for  departure  and  left  Warsaw 
with  his  family  for  Petersburg,  where  he  lived  on  his 
income.  Having  given  up  business,  he  took  up  literary 
work  and  translated  German  philosophical  works, 
made  friends  in  the  literary  world,  and  knew  Pushkin 
and  Kriloff.  His  children,  Emilia  Lvovna  amongst 
others,  inherited  his  intellectual  gifts.  One  of  his 
sons  was  a  remarkable  caricaturist  and  edited  a  cari- 

1  This  Boyar  was  no  doubt  a  nephew  of  the  Great  Spatar. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  27 

cature  newspaper  which  was  very  well  known  at  the 
time.  The  Nevahovitch  family  produced  no  men  of 
science.  Metchnikofi  himself  considered  that  he  had 
inherited  his  mother's  disposition  and  turn  of  mind. 
In  any  case,  his  ancestors  on  both  sides  included 
talented  individuals,  from  whom  he  may  have 
inherited  his  gifts  and  his  innate  taste  for  science. 


CHAPTEK  VII 

The  Kharkofi  Lycee— Bogomoloff  and  Socialism— Atheism— Natural 
History  studies — Private  lodgings — Private  lessons  in  histology 
from  Professor  Tschelkoff — A  borrowed  microscope — First  article 
— Italian  Opera — The  gold  medal. 

IN  1856  Dmitri  Ivanovitch  took  the  boys  to  Kharkoff 
in  order  to  make  them  enter  the  Lycee.  They  passed 
their  entrance  examination  quite  satisfactorily ;  Kolia 
was  admitted  into  the  fifth  class  and  Ilia  into  the  one 
below  it.  They  were  day  boarders  and  lived  in  the 
house  of  one  of  their  former  tutors. 

This  was  at  a  time  when  the  new  and  liberal  reign 
of  Alexander  II.  was  giving  birth  to  many  hopes  ; 
the  Lycees  preserved  but  insignificant  traces  of  the 
hard  regime  of  Nicholas  I.  Previous  narrow  and 
doctrinal  teaching  was  giving  way  to  a  current  of 
realistic  and  rational  ideas,  physical  and  natural 
science  had  become  the  vogue,  and  professors  were 
trying  to  come  into  touch  with  their  pupils  and  to 
influence  their  intellectual  development.  The  boys 
on  their  side  were  founding  mutual  instruction  clubs, 
attending  popular  Sunday  lectures,  interesting  them- 
selves in  social  questions — in  fact  the  revolutionary 
movement  was  beginning  to  strike  root.  Life  in 
general  was  intense,  aspirations  exalted,  and  hopes 
radiant. 

During  his  first  school  year  Elie  worked  assidu- 
ously in  all  branches  of  the  curriculum,  and  his 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  29 

name  soon  appeared  on  the  honours  list.  The 
Eussian  language  teacher  became  his  friend,  and 
greatly  contributed  to  his  development  by  choosing 
for  him  books  of  general  knowledge.  Under  this 
direction  Elie  read,  among  other  things,  Buckle's 
History  of  Civilisation,  which  had  at  that  time  a  very 
great  influence  on  the  young  Russian  mind.  Accord- 
ing to  the  author's  principal  thesis,  the  progress  of 
humanity  depended  chiefly  upon  that  of  positive 
science  ;  this  idea  sunk  deeply  into  the  boy's  mind  and 
confirmed  his  scientific  aspirations. 

When  he  reached  the  fifth  class  he  formed  a 
friendship  with  one  of  his  school-fellows,  Bogomoloff, 
who  had  great  influence  over  Elie's  ulterior  develop- 
ment ;  he  was  the  son  of  a  colour  manufacturer,  and 
his  elder  brothers  were  studying  chemistry  at  the 
Kharkofi  University  with  a  view  to  applying  it  to 
their  industry.  They  had  travelled  abroad  and  had 
brought  back  novel  ideas  and  books  forbidden  by  the 
Russian  censorship ;  they  influenced  their  young 
brother,  who  in  his  turn  initiated  Elie.  It  was  thus 
that  the  latter  became  acquainted  with  materialistic 
ideas  and  social  theories  ;  he  read  the  Popular  Star, 
the  Bell  of  Herzin,  and  other  publications  prohibited  in 
Russia.  Little  by  little  he  lost  the  faith  which  he  had 
held  when  under  his  mother's  influence.  Atheism,  how- 
ever, was  to  him  more  interesting  than  disappointing  ; 
it  incited  in  him  a  state  of  general  criticism.  Ardently 
passionate  in  this  as  in  all  things,  he  preached  atheism 
to  others  and  received  the  nickname  of  "  God  is  not." 
The  course  of  teaching  at  the  Lycee  did  not  escape  his 
criticism ;  when  he  had  reached  the  fourth  class  he 
omitted  those  exercises  which  seemed  to  him  devoid 
of  interest.  On  the  other  hand,  he  plunged  with 


30  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

passion  into  the  study  of  natural  science,  botany, 
and  geology. 

He  had  ceased  to  be  a  model  student,  but  his 
scientific  aspirations  became  stronger  from  day  to 
day. 

In  order  to  cultivate  foreign  languages,  the  two 
brothers  had  been  placed  in  a  boarding-house  where 
morals  were  strict  and  patriarchal,  the  food  bad,  and 
the  director's  sermons  long  and  tedious.  None  of 
these  things  suited  Elie.  This  regime,  with  the  addi- 
tion of  dancing  lessons,  inspired  him  with  the  deepest 
aversion ;  he  resolved  to  obtain  from  his  parents  per- 
mission to  take  furnished  rooms  for  himself  and  his 
brother. 

In  spite  of  the  current  of  political  exaltation  which 
was  then  universal  in  Russia,  Elie  was  too  deeply 
immersed  in  his  studies  to  be  carried  away  in  that 
direction.  He  did  at  one  time  attend  popular 
lectures  and  the  political  gatherings  of  the  students, 
but  he  felt  that  science  was  his  real  vocation.  He 
was  so  early  and  so  completely  absorbed  by  it  that 
he  was  not  interested  in  the  great  movement  for 
the  emancipation  of  the  serfs.  It  is  true  that,  at 
Panassovka,  the  question  was  not  acute  as  elsewhere, 
the  serfs  being  quite  happy  ;  however,  the  fact  remains 
that  it  was  his  passion  for  science  which  kept  him, 
in  spite  of  his  exalted  ideas  and  ardent  soul,  apart 
from  the  noble  movement  for  liberation. 

In  the  third  class  he  made  friends  with  a  group 
of  students  who  were  devoted  to  science  and  to  intel- 
lectual culture.  Elie,  owing  to  his  ardour  and 
vivacity,  played  the  part  of  a  ferment  in  that  little 
circle,  each  member  of  which  was  to  make  a  special 
study  of  certain  scientific  branches  in  order  that  they 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  31 

might  together  edit  a  new  encyclopaedia  of  human 
knowledge.  He  studied  German  so  as  to  read  in 
the  original  the  classical  materialistic  writers,  Vogt, 
Feuerbach,  Buchner,  Moleschott,  etc.  The  Lycee 
lectures  were  relegated  to  the  background.  Never- 
theless, owing  to  his  great  facility  of  assimilation, 
he  was  successful  in  every  branch.  Plans  for  his 
ulterior  activities  were  soon  definitely  fixed. 

At  that  time  of  intense  intellectual  effervescence 
in  Russia,  libraries  were  invaded  by  a  number  of 
translations  of  works  on  natural  science.  Elie  absorbed- 
them  with  avidity,  and  read  amongst  others  a  Russian 
translation  of  Bronn's  book  on  the  Classes  and  Orders 
of  the  Animal  Kingdom.  He  saw  for  the  first  time  in 
the  plates  of  that  work  pictures  of  micro-organisms, 
amoebae,  Infusoria,  Rhizopoda,  etc.  That  world  of 
lower  beings  impressed  him  so  strongly  that  he  resolved 
from  that  moment  to  devote  himself  to  the  study  of 
them,  that  is,  to  the  study  of  the  primitive  mani- 
festations of  life  in  its  simplest  forms. 

He  was  then  fifteen  years  old.  The  two  brothers 
now  obtained  from  their  parents  permission  to  live 
in  furnished  rooms,  an  independent  arrangement 
which  allowed  each  of  them  to  satisfy  his  individual 
tastes.  Apart  from  the  Lycee,  Kolia  spent  his  time 
in  playing  cards  and  billiards  and  in  other  amuse- 
ments, whilst  Elie  worked  with  ardour,  his  only 
recreations  being  music  and  debates  on  abstract 
subjects.  When  he  entered  the  second  class  he  had 
become  completely  specialised.  In  order  to  tackle 
serious  scientific  studies,  he  tried  to  come  into  touch 
with  one  of  the  University  professors.  The  University 
of  Kharkoff  was  still  making  use  of  ancient  methods  ; 
teaching  was  given  by  means  of  manuals,  with  prac- 


32  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

tical  application ;  but  Elie,  who  did  not  know  that, 
dreamt  of  finding  in  laboratories  assistance  and  means 
of,  at  least,  undertaking  personal  scientific  work.  He 
attended  a  lecture  on  comparative  anatomy,  and,  in 
order  not  to  appear  too  young,  he  wore  his  ordinary 
clothes  instead  of  the  Lycee  uniform.  After  the  lecture 
was  over,  he  shyly  approached  the  professor  and 
begged  to  be  allowed  to  study  protoplasm  under  his 
direction.  The  professor  received  him  coldly,  and 
told  him  in  a  pedantic  tone  that  he  was  in  too  much 
of  a  hurry,  and  that  he  should  first  of  all  finish  his 
course  at  the  Lycee  and  then  get  admitted  into  the 
University. 

It  was  a  disappointment  for  the  eager  boy  ;  how- 
ever, he  did  not  lose  heart  but  continued  to  attend 
divers  University  lectures,  clinging  to  the  hope  that 
another  professor  might  be  more  sympathetic.  He 
was  pleased  with  the  lectures  of  a  young  physio- 
logist, Tschelkofi  by  name,  and  decided  to  make 
another  attempt.  This  time  he  was  successful.  The 
professor  received  him  kindly  and  consented  to  give 
him  private  lessons  in  histology.  Then,  fired  with  a 
passionate  desire  to  produce  something  personal  in 
medical  science,  and  attracted  by  Virchow's  cellular 
theory,  he  dreamt  that  he  might  create  a  general 
theory  of  his  own  in  medicine.  In  order  to  increase 
his  scientific  knowledge,  he  undertook  with  his  friend 
Zalensky  the  translation  of  Grove's  work,  The  Unity 
of  Physical  Forces.  The  professor  of  chemistry  and 
natural  history  willingly  encouraged  the  two  boys 
in  this  work,  to  which  they  gave  up  the  whole  of  the 
school  year.  Elie  wasted  no  opportunity  of  learning  ; 
during  those  lectures  which  did  not  interest  him  he 
used  to  read  scientific  books.  One  day  that  he  was 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  33 

doing  so  during  catechism  he  did  not  notice  that  the 
priest,  wishing  to  know  what  he  was  reading,  had 
come  up  to  him.  The  latter,  however,  was  greatly  im- 
pressed by  the  title  of  Radlkoffer's  learned  work  on 
The  Crystals  of  Proteic  Substances ;  he  returned  the 
book  without  a  word  and  never  interfered  with  him 
again. 

Through  the  assistance  of  some  medical  students, 
Elie  obtained  the  loan  of  a  microscope  ;  he  studied 
Infusoria  and  imagined  that  he  had  made  divers 
discoveries ;  he  hastened  to  write  an  article,  and  sent 
it  to  the  only  scientific  Russian  paper  then  in  existence, 
the  Bulletin  of  the  Moscow  Society  of  Naturalists.  To 
his  great  joy  his  MS.  was  accepted,  but  before  long 
the  young  scientist  perceived  that  his  deductions  were 
erroneous,  for  he  had  mistaken  phenomena  of  degener- 
escence  for  phenomena  of  development.  He  was  able 
to  stop  the  publication  of  this  article,  the  first  he  ever 
wrote,  and  it  never  appeared. 

Thanks  to  Tschelkoff,  who  lent  him  a  microscope 
for  the  duration  of  the  holidays,  he  was  able  to  study 
the  local  fauna  of  inferior  animals.  At  the  beginning 
of  his  last  year  at  the  Lycee,  he  read  a  text-book  of 
geology  by  a  Kharkofi  professor  and,  with  juvenile 
assurance,  wrote  a  critical  analysis  of  it.  Inserted  in 
the  Journal  de  Moscou,  this  was  Elie's  first  publica- 
tion ;  he  was  then  sixteen  years  old.  Encouraged 
by  this  success,  he  sent  several  other  criticisms,  but 
they  were  not  accepted. 

The  last  examinations  were  coming  near  :  Elie 
wished  to  obtain  the  gold  medal,  not  only  out  of  pride, 
but  in  order  to  prove  to  his  parents  that  he  deserved 
their  assistance  in  order  to  go  abroad  to  continue  his 
studies.  He  therefore  provisionally  suspended  his 


34  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

favourite  pursuits  and  resumed  the  study  of  the  long- 
neglected  school  programme.  The  last  examinations 
took  place  in  the  spring  of  1862.  It  happened  to  be 
the  Italian  Opera  season  and  Elie  could  not  resist  the 
temptations  offered  him  by  music.  In  order  to  make 
up  the  time,  he  often  had  to  work  the  whole  night 
long  at  the  cost  of  severe  fatigue. 

In  spite  of  this  complication,  he  passed  his  exam- 
inations brilliantly  and  obtained  the  gold  medal. 
He  now  wished  for  nothing  but  to  devote  himself  to 
scientific  study. 


CHAPTEK  VIII 

An  early  love — A  schoolfellow's  sister — A  pretty  sister-in-law. 

IN  spite  of  his  precocious  vocation,  Elie  was  in  no 
wise  indifferent  to  his  surroundings.  His  mind  was 
sensitive  and  impressionable  and  his  affections  deep 
and  tender,  especially  where  his  mother  was  con- 
cerned. He  never  undertook  anything  without  con- 
sulting her,  a  sweet  habit  which  he  preserved  even  in 
his  maturity. 

It  was  already  at  the  age  of  six  that  he  received 
his  first  love  impression  :  a  lady  came  on  a  visit  to 
Panassovka  with  her  little  girl  of  eight,  a  lovely  curly- 
headed  child,  sweet  and  graceful,  a  living  floweret. 
Ilia  could  not  admire  her  enough,  and  was  most  lavish 
in  his  attentions,  offering  her  flowers  and  fruit,  in- 
venting games  to  amuse  her  and  trying  by  every 
means  to  make  himself  agreeable  to  her.  The  presence 
of  this  charming  little  girl  caused  him  great  joy  and 
tender  emotion  ;  he  wished  that  she  might  never  go 
away.  .  .  .  But  the  visit  soon  ended,  and  this  first 
idyll  was  short-lived  ;  new  impressions  were  not  long 
in  replacing  it.  Nevertheless  the  picture  of  the 
pretty  child  was  so  deeply  impressed  in  his  mind  that 
he  never  forgot  her. 

The  second  time  he  fell  in  love  was  when  he  was 
already  at  the  Lycee  ;  one  of  his  schoolfellows  had  a 
very  pretty  sister  whom  Elie  used  to  meet  on  half- 

35 


36  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

holidays.  He  admired  her  from  afar,  and  tried  to 
contrive  opportunities  of  meeting  her ;  she  was  the 
object  of  his  dreams  for  the  whole  of  one  term. 

But  he  was  presently  to  be  seized  by  a  more  serious 
feeling.  When  he  was  in  the  third  class  at  the  Lycee 
he  came  as  usual  to  Panassovka  for  the  summer 
holidays  and  found  there  a  new  inmate,  his  elder 
brother's  young  wife.  Soon,  to  his  own  astonish- 
ment, he  found  that  the  image  of  his  last  winter's 
passion  was  being  effaced  by  that  of  his  sister-in-law. 
She,  a  pretty,  fashionable  girl,  was  bored  with  country 
life  ;  she  criticised  the  simple  habits  at  Panassovka 
which  formed  a  sharp  contrast  with  her  tastes  ;  she 
soon  became  very  unpopular  and,  feeling  lonely  and 
bored,  tried  to  attract  her  young  brother-in-law. 
Elie,  at  first  a  willing  comrade,  soon  found  himself 
harbouring  a  more  tender  feeling  for  his  sister-in-law  ; 
she  complained  to  him  of  the  family's  hostility, 
declared  herself  misunderstood,  and  easily  excited 
the  pity  and  sympathy  of  the  sensitive  boy.  He 
became  her  ardent  defender  and  went  so  far  as  to 
fight  her  battles,  even  with  his  mother,  whom  he 
reproached  with  fancied  injustice.  For  nearly  four 
years  he  remained  under  his  sister-in-law's  sentimental 
influence.  He  afterwards  freed  himself  completely 
from  it,  but  the  fact  remains  that  she  was  the  first 
woman  who  inspired  real  sentiment  in  his  youthful 
manhood. 


CHAPTER  IX 

Journey  to  Germany — Leipzig — Wiirzburg — A  hasty  return. 

DURING  his  later  years  at  the  Lycee,  Elie  had  attended 
several  courses  at  the  Kharkofi  University  and  had 
realised  the  inadequacy  of  the  teaching  and  the  im- 
possibility of  any  personal  research  work  in  the 
laboratories.  His  greatest  desire,  therefore,  was  to 
go  abroad  to  study.  At  that  time,  the  German 
universities,  being  nearer,  chiefly  attracted  Russian 
students.  Their  laboratories  were  widely  opened  to 
foreigners,  and  lectures  were  being  given  by  a  pleiad 
of  celebrated  professors. 

In  order  to  attain  his  object,  Elie  took  care  to 
secure  his  mother's  support.  It  was  not  very  dim- 
cult,  for  she  believed  in  her  son's  scientific  future  and 
was  anxious  to  help  him  ;  she  succeeded  in  convincing 
his  father  and,  by  means  of  serious  sacrifices,  the 
necessary  sum  was  procured.  Elie,  who  was  espe- 
cially interested  in  the  study  of  protoplasm,  chose 
the  University  of  Wurzburg,  where  the  celebrated 
zoologist  Kolliker  was  lecturing.  Thinking  that  in 
Germany  the  term  began  in  September,  as  in  Russia, 
he  hastened  to  depart.  The  journey  at  that  time  was 
long  and  complicated  ;  yet,  in  spite  of  much  fatigue, 
Elie  only  stopped  one  day  in  Berlin  and  hurried  to 
Leipzig,  the  centre  of  the  book  trade,  in  order  to 
procure  the  necessary  books.  He  reached  Leipzig  in 

37 


38  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

the  evening  and  was  greatly  embarrassed,  not  knowing 
where  to  find  a  lodging.  A  young  German  in  the 
station  offered  him  a  room  in  his  own  family's  house 
and  took  him  there.  The  next  morning,  very  early, 
Elie  ran  out  to  buy  his  books  and,  in  his  haste,  forgot 
to  note  the  number  of  the  house  and  the  name  of 
the  street ;  it  was  with  the  utmost  difficulty  that  he 
found  the  place  again.  Much  disturbed  by  this  mis- 
adventure, he  hastened  to  start  for  Wiirzburg  and, 
on  arriving  there,  met  with  a  great  disappointment ; 
all  the  professors  were  absent,  this  being  the  middle 
of  the  holidays,  and  the  lectures  were  not  to  begin  for 
six  weeks.  The  poor  boy,  thus  alone  for  the  first  time 
among  strangers,  felt  completely  lost.  He  was  given 
the  address  of  some  Eussian  students  and  he  hastily 
sought  them  out,  full  of  joy  and  hope,  only  to  be 
received  coldly  and  distrustfully  by  his  compatriots. 
After  this  discouraging  reception,  he  sadly  proceeded 
to  look  for  a  room,  and  having  found  one  in  the  house 
of  a  disagreeable  old  couple,  he  brought  his  bag  there. 
But,  as  he  began  to  unpack  it,  he  was  seized  with  a 
feeling  of  such  utter  despair  that  he  hastily  put  his 
luggage  together  again  and  announced  to  his  elderly 
hosts  that  he  was  going.  Surprised  and  indignant,  they 
abused  him  so  brutally  that  his  distress  only  increased  ; 
he  rushed  to  the  station,  took  the  first  train,  and 
returned  to  Panassovka  without  a  stop.  This  hurried 
return  disconcerted  his  family,  but,  seeing  the  state 
he  was  in,  nobody  reproached  him.  His  mother  had 
felt  much  anxiety  on  his  account,  and  was  in  fact  not 
sorry  to  keep  him  a  little  longer  under  her  wing. 
Thus,  in  dismal  failure,  ended  that  first  journey 
abroad,  so  ardently  desired.  The  result  might  have 
been  very  different  if  Elie  had  reached  Wiirzburg  at 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  39 

the  right  moment,  or  if  the  Russian  students  had  been 
more  friendly.  Too  young  and  too  impressionable  to 
bear  absolute  solitude,  he  could  only  have  been  saved 
by  his  favourite  studies  or  by  a  friendly  environment. 
His  plans  and  fair  dreams  had  been  overthrown  by  a 
series  of  simple  mishaps. 


CHAPTER  X 

Kharkoff  University — Physiology — The  Vorticella — Controversy  with 
Kiihne — The  Origin  of  Species — The  Gasterotricha — University 
degree. 

THERE  was  now  no  choice  and  he  had  to  resign  him- 
self to  the  Kharkoff  University.  There  is  not  much  to 
relate  about  this  period,  which  was  but  a  fugitive 
episode  in  the  course  of  Elie  Metchnikoff,  for  the 
"  Alma  Mater  "  did  not  have  upon  him  either  the 
influence  or  the  prestige  which  it  generally  exerts  upon 
youth. 

Whilst  the  stream  of  new  ideas  had  already  reached 
the  Lycee,  the  University  of  Kharkoff  had  remained 
extremely  conservative  ;  this  was  owing  to  the  fact 
that  the  Lycee  professors  were  young  men,  whilst  those 
of  the  University  were  elderly  and  old-fashioned. 
Officials  rather  than  scientists,  they  were  content  with 
ancient  methods,  and  lectured  without  practical  work, 
from  obsolete  and  ill-chosen  manuals.  A  few  of  them 
drank,  others  neglected  their  work.  In  the  Medical 
and  Natural  Science  Faculties,  only  two  agreges  were 
newly  appointed,  Tschelkoff,  the  physiologist  we  have 
already  mentioned,  and  a  chemist  named  Beketoff. 
These  two  were  indeed  scientists  and  master-minds, 
and  it  was  only  under  their  direction  that  any  one 
did  any  serious  work  ;  the  other  lectures  were  pure 
formalities.  Elie  wished  to  go  in  for  medical  studies 

40 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  41 

but  his  mother  dissuaded  him.  "  You  are  too  sensi- 
tive," she  said,  "  you  could  not  bear  the  constant 
sight  of  human  suffering."  At  the  same  time, 
Tschelkoff  suggested  the  Natural  Science  Faculty  as 
being  more  appropriate  to  purely  scientific  activity. 
Elie  accepted  his  opinion  and  began  to  study  physio- 
logy under  his  direction.  His  great  desire  was  to 
embark  at  once  on  personal  research,  and  his  teacher 
advised  him  to  study  the  mobile  stalk  of  a  ciliated 
Infusorian,  the  Vorticella.  The  question  was  to  deter- 
mine whether  this  stalk  presented  any  analogy  with 
muscular  tissue  and  whether  it  offered  the  same 
reactions.  Elie  set  to  work  with  ardour  and  found 
that  the  stalk  of  the  Vorticella  had  no  muscular 
character.  His  memoir  on  the  subject  appeared  in 
1863  in  Muller's  Archives.  It  provoked  a  severe,  even 
brutal,  answer  from  the  celebrated  physiologist  Kuhne 
which  deeply  grieved  the  young  scientist  and,  stimu- 
lating his  energy  still  further,  incited  him  to  repeat 
his  experiments.  He  obtained  the  same  results  as 
the  first  time,  and  answered  Kuhne  in  a  somewhat 
bitter  manner,  the  latter's  tone  having  stirred  his 
combativity. 

Meanwhile,  Elie  was  yearning  for  independent  and 
more  general  study.  During  his  unsuccessful  journey, 
he  had  acquired  in  Leipzig  many  recently  published 
scientific  books,  and,  among  them,  Darwin's  Origin  of 
Species.  The  theory  of  evolution  deeply  struck  the 
boy's  mind  and  his  thoughts  immediately  turned  in 
that  direction.  He  said  to  himself  that  isolated  forms 
which  had  found  no  place  in  definite  animal  or 
vegetable  orders  might  perhaps  serve  as  a  bond  be- 
tween those  orders  and  elucidate  their  genetic  rela- 
tionships. This  leading  idea  made  him  choose  for 


42  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

his  researches  some  very  singular  fresh- water  crea- 
tures, partly  like  Rotifera  and  partly  like  certain 
worms  of  the  Nematode  group.  He  succeeded  in 
establishing  a  new  intermediate  order  which  he  named 
"  Gastrotricha,"  and  which  was  straightway  accepted. 

The  whole  of  his  first  year  at  the  University  was 
given  up  to  those  special  studies.  As  he  was  fully 
aware  that  the  teaching  of  the  University  did  not 
answer  to  his  aspirations,  he  resolved  to  remain  there 
as  short  a  time  as  possible,  and  to  get  through  the  course 
of  studies  in  two  years  instead  of  the  four  which  were 
usual.  In  order  to  succeed  in  doing  so,  he  provision- 
ally gave  up  his  scientific  researches,  attended  the 
lectures  as  a  free  auditor,  and  spent  the  whole  of  the 
second  year  in  cramming  for  the  "  candidate  "  exam- 
ination, which  answers  to  a  Licentiate  in  Western 
universities.  It  happened  again  this  time  that  the 
examinations  coincided  with  the  Opera  season,  but, 
though  he  indulged  in  his  passion  for  music,  he 
succeeded,  by  dint  of  a  supreme  effort,  in  passing  them 
very  brilliantly. 

Having  gone  through  the  University  at  such  an 
accelerated  pace,  he  did  not  come  into  contact  with 
other  students,  who,  themselves  chiefly  preoccupied 
with  politics,  took  little  interest  in  a  youth  so  ex- 
clusively absorbed  in  science.  He  therefore  formed 
none  of  those  attractive  juvenile  friendships  which 
he  had  enjoyed  at  the  Lycee.  His  hasty  University 
studies  necessarily  left  lacunae  in  his  general  know- 
ledge, a  fact  which  he  afterwards  keenly  deplored. 

With  the  exception  of  Tschelkoff,  his  teachers 
had  had  no  decisive  influence  on  his  career,  and  his 
two  years  at  the  University  formed  but  a  colourless 
episode  in  his  life. 


CHAPTER  XI 

Heligoland — Giessen  Congress — Leuckart — Visit  to  Leo  Metchnikoff 
at  Geneva — Socialist  gatherings — Metchnikoff' s  discovery  appro- 
priated by  Leuckart — Naples — Kovalevsky — Comparative  em- 
bryology— Embryonic  layers — Bakounine  and  Setchenoff — Cholera 
at  Naples — Gottingen — Anatomical  studies — Munich ;  von  Sieboldt 
— Music — Return  to  Naples — Intracellular  digestion. 

ELIE  still  had  his  Licentiate  thesis  to  prepare.  In 
order  to  do  so,  he  decided  to  spend  two  months  in 
the  island  of  Heligoland,  of  which  the  flora  and  fauna 
were  very  attractive  to  naturalists.  In  spite  of  his 
previous  failure,  his  parents  made  no  objection  to  his 
departure  ;  they  gave  him  the  little  money  they  could 
spare  and  Elie  started,  in  1864. 

As  soon  as  he  arrived  in  Heligoland  he  became 
absorbed  in  his  work.  He  proceeded  with  his  idea  of 
bringing  light  upon  the  genealogy  of  organisms  through 
the  study  of  isolated  forms  outside  definite  groups.1 

His  ardour  in  his  work  attracted  the  attention  of 
several  German  scientists,  one  of  whom  introduced 
him  to  the  celebrated  botanist  Cohn,  who  soon  became 
interested  in  him.  During  the  walks  which  they  took 
together,  they  held  scientific  conversations  full  of 
interest  for  the  youth.  Cohn  advised  him  to  work 
under  the  celebrated  zoologist  Leuckart.  Elie  received 
this  counsel  with  enthusiasm,  but  there  was  a  great 
difficulty,  which  was  the  lack  of  money  to  prolong 

1  He  made  researches  on  a  very  singular  annulate  worm,  the  Fabricia. 
43 


44  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

his  stay  abroad.  He  did  not  wish  to  ask  for  more 
from  his  parents  and  decided  on  the  following  plan, 
which  he  expounded  in  the  following  letter  to  his 
mother,  the  constant  confidante  of  all  his  aspirations  : 

HELIGOLAND,  Aug.  12,  1864. 

DEAR  MAMMA,  ...  I  am  thinking  of  staying  here  another 
month,  after  which  I  shall  go  (at  least  that  is  my  desire)  for  ten 
days  toGiessen,  where  there  will  be  a  General  Congress  of  natural- 
ists and  physicians  from  the  whole  of  Europe.  This  Congress 
tempts  me  so  much  that  I  want  to  do  my  utmost  to  attend  it. 

Besides  all  the  scientific  benefit  that  I  shall  reap  from 
conversations  with  scientists,  I  can  also  study  Professor 
Leuckart's  rich  collections.  This  would  complete  the  studies 
which  I  am  successfully  pursuing  at  the  seaside. 

In  order  to  realise  my  ardent  wish  to  profit  by  such  treasures, 
I  must  remain  three  weeks  longer  at  Heligoland,  travel  to 
Giessen  and  live  there  for  ten  days  ;  all  that  out  of  the  money 
which  was  to  keep  me  here  until  the  26  Aug.  only.  .  .  . 
Therefore,  instead  of  living  in  the  hotel,  I  have  taken  a  room 
at  a  fisherman's,  for  half  the  price  ;  instead  of  a  dinner  and 
coffee  I  eat  what  I  can  get  and  I  only  spend  90  centimes  a 
day  for  my  food.  (Food  is  dear,  as  all  the  provisions  come 
from  Hamburg  and  from  England.)  Instead  of  changing  my 
linen  two  or  three  times  a  week,  I  only  do  so  once  or  twice, 
which  allows  me  to  spend  less  on  laundry. 

The  money  thus  economised,  together  with  the  sum  which 
I  had  put  aside  for  my  first  installation  at  Petersburg,  con- 
stitutes a  sufficient  capital  to  provide  the  following  joys  and 
advantages  :  1°,  I  shall  stay  three  weeks  longer  at  the  seaside, 
which  will  allow  me  to  get  on  with  my  researches  and  to 
increase  my  collections  ;  2°,  I  shall  attend  the  Congress  ;  3°, 
I  shall  be  able  to  study  Leuckart's  collections  and  take  advan- 
tage of  his  books  and  counsel. 

I  beseech  you  not  to  look  upon  this  description  of  my 
present  life  as  a  complaint  or  a  murmur ;  on  the  contrary  I 
am  delighted  to  procure  so  many  advantages  at  so  small  a 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  45 

cost ;  I  am  happy,  too,  to  be  able  to  assure  you  in  all  conscience 
that  I  am  not  wasting  the  money  that  you  have  found  for  me 
with  so  much  care  and  affection.  I  only  wish  I  could  find 
myself  oftener  in  the  same  conditions. 

Please  also  believe  that  my  health  is  in  no  way  suffering 
from  my  work.  I  give  you  my  word  that  until  now  I  have  not 
had  a  single  headache. 

Moreover,  I  do  not  think  work  is  at  all  detrimental  to 
health  ;  I  see  here  several  German  scientists  who  could  fell 
an  ox  with  their  fist !  Altogether  I  beseech  you  not  to  be 
anxious  on  my  account ;  you  have  quite  enough  painful  pre- 
occupations without  that,  and  I  am  in  such  excellent  circum- 
stances that  there  really  is  nothing  to  worry  about.  I  kiss 
your  hands  many  times. 

Yours  affectionately, 

ELIE  METCHNIKOFF. 

P.S. — Write  to  me  oftener.  Every  word  from  you  is  so 
precious  to  me  ! 

He  did  not  tell  his  mother  that  he  never  had 
enough  to  eat.  Neither  did  he  wish  Cohn  and  his 
other  acquaintances  at  Heligoland  to  notice  it,  and 
he  carefully  concealed  his  style  of  living. 

He  went  to  Giessen  for  the  opening  of  the  Natural- 
ists' Congress  and  read  with  success  two  papers 
dealing  with  his  researches  at  Heligoland.  Engel- 
mann  (who  was  to  become  well  known  as  a  physio- 
logist) and  he  were  the  youngest  members  of  the 
Congress,  and  their  extreme  youth  attracted  general 
attention.  Elie  at  last  made  Leuckart's  acquaint- 
ance ;  he  was  charmed  by  him  and  definitely  decided 
to  begin  at  once  to  work  under  his  direction,  and,  as 
his  stay  abroad  had  thus  to  be  prolonged,  he  asked 
and  obtained  a  bursa  from  the  Russian  Ministry  of 
Public  Education. 

The  results  of  his  researches  at  Heligoland  had 


46  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

led  him  to  suppose  that  the  Nematodes  (of  the  worm 
type)  formed  an  independent  group  ;  he  now  pro- 
posed to  settle  that  question.  Leuckart  allowed  him 
to  work  in  his  laboratory  during  his  absence  for  the 
holidays  ;  Elie  immediately  set  to  work  and  dis- 
covered a  very  curious  and  quite  novel  case  of  alter- 
nation of  generations;  hermaphrodite  and  parasitic 
Nematodes  giving  birth  to  a  free  bisexual  generation. 

Delighted  with  his  discovery,  he  hastened  to  com- 
municate it  to  Leuckart,  who  was  incredulous  at  first 
but  had  to  give  way  to  evidence  when  Elie  showed 
him  all  the  intermediary  •  stages.  Still  the  German 
scientist  was  obviously  annoyed  that  this  discovery 
should  have  been  made  in  his  absence  and  inde- 
pendently from  him.  He  proposed  to  the  young 
man  that  they  should  continue  researches  in  colla- 
boration and  publish  a  joint  memoir.  Elie  accepted 
joyfully.  In  his  ardour  he  worked  too  much,  and 
fatigued  his  eyesight  so  that  he  was  forced  to  limit 
his  microscopical  researches  to  a  few  hours  a  day,  and 
Leuckart  advised  him  to  take  a  rest. 

It  happened  that  Elie's  brother  Leo  had  just  settled 
in  Geneva  and  invited  him  to  stay  with  him  ;  Elie 
started  to  join  him.  The  brothers  had  not  met  for  a 
long  time.  Leo  had  been  travelling  and  had  resided 
in  many  different  places.  He  was  an  extraordinarily 
gifted  man,  impulsive,  brilliant,  and  artistic,  but  rest- 
less and  incapable  of  adhering  to  a  steady  course  of 
action  ;  he  scattered  his  activities  and  did  not  there- 
fore produce  all  that  his  rich  nature  was  capable  of. 
He  had  a  remarkable  gift  for  languages  ;  he  knew  not 
only  a  number  of  European  languages  but  also  several 
Oriental  languages,  having  been  in  the  East,  where  he 
had  occupied  a  post  of  agent  in  navigation  and  com- 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  47 

merce.  He  afterwards  lived  in  Italy,  took  an  active 
part  in  the  Garibaldi  movement  and  was  wounded. 
A  clever  painter,  he  also  had  real  literary  talent ; 
handsome,  witty,  agreeable,  he  was  a  most  attractive 
personality.  Elie  had  great  affection  for  him. 

He  found  him  surrounded  with  young  men  and 
studying  a  map.  They  were  discussing  the  acquisi- 
tion of  a  piece  of  ground  in  Italy  in  order  to  found 
a  socialistic  community,  and  Leo,  who  knew  the 
country,  was  to  choose  the  locality.  Elie  was  at  once 
made  acquainted  with  the  political  questions  of  the 
day ;  the  young  scientist  was  unfavourably  impressed, 
for  the  whole  reduced  itself  to  party  questions  and 
dogmatic  discussions  founded  on  hollow  grounds. 
Accustomed  as  he  already  was  to  positive  scientific 
methods,  vague  and  arbitrary  theories  could  not 
satisfy  him. 

On  the  other  hand,  he  was  deeply  impressed  by 
the  personality  of  the  celebrated  socialistic  Russian 
writer,  Herzen,  who  resided  in  Geneva  at  that  time. 
The  young  revolutionaries  considered  him  as  too 
literary  and  too  much  of  a  theoretician  ;  they  them- 
selves yearned  for  a  direct-action  policy.  Leo  Metch- 
nikoff,  however,  admired  him  fervently.  Meetings 
often  took  place  in  Herzen's  rooms  ;  he  used  to  read 
to  his  guests  with  wonderful  effect  his  yet  unpublished 
manuscript  Passe  et  pensees.  A  great  and  powerful 
figure,  the  superiority  of  his  intelligence  was  almost 
crushing,  while  his  sparkling  wit  and  the  nobility  of 
his  whole  being  endowed  him  with  an  incomparable 
and  irresistible  personal  charm.  Metchnikoff  often 
said  that  no  man  had  left  a  deeper  impression  on  his 
life.  As  a  politician,  however,  he  had  not  the  same 
prestige  in  his  sight. 


48  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

This  sojourn  in  a  revolutionary  centre  interested 
him  much,  but  had  the  result  of  confirming  his  con- 
viction that  science  was  immeasurably  superior  to 
politics,  and  he  congratulated  himself  on  the  path  he 
had  chosen.  After  he  had  rested,  he  started  to  return 
to  Griessen  and  stopped  at  Heidelberg,  a  centre  for 
Russian  students  who  gathered  around  Helmholtz, 
Virchow,  and  Bunsen.  He  hurried  to  the  library  in 
order  to  see  scientific  periodicals  ;  one  of  the  first  that 
came  under  his  eyes  was  a  number  of  the  Gottingen 
News,  containing  a  memoir  by  Leuckart  on  the  Nema- 
todes  which  they  had  studied  together ;  Leuckart 
described,  in  his  own  name,  their  common  researches 
and  also  those  personal  to  the  young  man,  whom  he 
only  mentioned  incidentally.  Elie  was  shocked  and 
indignant.  On  his  return  to  Giessen  he  tried  to  obtain 
an  explanation  from  Leuckart  but  in  vain  ;  the  latter 
eluded  his  questions  and  gave  him  no  answer.1 

In  his  despair,  the  youth  confided  in  Glaus,  a  pro- 
fessor of  zoology  whose  acquaintance  he  had  made 
at  the  Congress,  who  told  him  that  Leuckart  was  in 
the  habit  of  such  dealings,  and  urged  Elie,  as  an  inde- 
pendent stranger,  to  reveal  the  fact.  He  pressed  this 
with  so  much  insistence  that  Elie  ended  in  following 
his  advice  ;  he  sent  an  article  stating  the  case  to 
Dubois-Reymond's  journal.  He  then  departed  from 
Giessen  without  taking  leave  of  Leuckart. 

Having  had  a  bursa  of  1600  roubles  a  year  granted 
him  for  two  years  by  the  Russian  Ministry  of  Public 
Instruction,  he  was  able  to  undertake  a  journey  to 
the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  in  order  to  pursue 
his  researches. 

1  All  this  episode  was  described  by  Metchnikoff  in  1866  in  a  separate 
publication  with  great  restraint  and  in  a  very  moderate  tone. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  49 

He  had  heard  of  a  very  talented  young  zoologist, 
Alexander  Kovalevsky,  who  also  knew  him  by  hearsay 
and  had  written  him  a  letter  full  of  enthusiasm  con- 
cerning the  rich  Mediterranean  fauna  and  the  facilities 
for  work  in  Italy.  He  therefore  went  to  Naples  on 
leaving  Giessen.  Though  the  journey  in  itself  had 
but  a  secondary  attraction  for  him,  he  had  expected 
to  receive  a  strong  impression  ;  but  his  imagination 
had  painted  such  grandiose  pictures  of  the  country 
that  he  had  to  cross,  that  the  reality  disappointed 
him,  and  Italy,  like  Switzerland  on  a  former  occasion, 
fell  very  far  short  of  his  expectations.  He  stopped 
at  Florence,  which  made  but  a  poor  impression 
on  him.  Museums  fatigued  him,  for  he  saw  a  great 
deal  too  many  works  of  art  all  at  once  without 
any  previous  preparation.  Architecture  and  the 
plastic  arts  in  general  did  not  take  any  hold  of  him. 
During  his  rapid  journey  he  only  saw  the  country 
quite  superficially  and  had  no  time  to  become  im- 
pregnated with  its  beauty.  He  therefore  hastened 
towards  Naples,  where  his  work  and  Kovalevsky 
attracted  him  far  more. 

He  found  in  Kovalevsky  a  young  man  with  shy 
but  cordial  manners  and  the  clear  sweet  eyes  of  a 
pure  child,  obviously  an  idealist.  He  had  for  science 
an  absolute  cult,  the  sacred  fire  of  the  worshipper  ; 
no  sacrifice  was  too  great,  no  difficulty  too  repellent 
for  his  ardour.  On  a  closer  acquaintance,  the  small, 
timid  young  man  proved  to  be  a  hard  fighter  where 
science  was  concerned.  The  two  young  men  formed 
an  excellent  impression  of  each  other,  and  a  friendship 
was  started  between  them  which  was  to  last  a  life- 
time. Though  very  different  from  each  other,  they 
met  on  common  ground,  a  passion  for  science.  They 

E 


50  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

worked  with  the  greatest  energy,  going  together  on 
zoological  excursions,  exchanging  their  ideas,  dis- 
cussing their  aspirations  ;  a  similarity  of  tastes  lent 
great  attraction  to  their  friendship. 

At  Giessen,  Elie  had  read  Fritz  Miiller's  For 
Darwin,  a  book  which  had  a  decisive  influence  on  the 
future  direction  of  his  researches.  Fritz  Miiller,  in  his 
embryological  works  on  certain  crustaceans,  had  been 
the  first  to  confirm  in  a  concrete  manner  Darwin's 
evolutionist  theories  ;  he  had  thus  demonstrated  that 
it  was  chiefly  in  embryology  that  precious  indications 
were  to  be  found  concerning  the  genealogy  of  organ- 
isms.1 Under  the  influence  of  this  work,  Elie,  who 
until  now  had  limited  himself  to  introductory  re- 
searches, resolved  to  concentrate  all  his  efforts  on  the 
comparative  embryology  of  animals.  He  started  to 
work  in  that  direction,  and  his  researches  confirmed 
him  more  and  more  in  the  opinion  that  the  key  of 
animal  evolution  and  genealogy  was  to  be  sought  for 
in  the  most  primitive  stages,  in  those  simple  phases 
of  development  where  no  secondary  element  has  yet 
been  introduced  from  external  conditions.  In  those 
primordial  stages,  essential  characters,  common  to 
all,  reveal  the  analogy  and  connections  between 
animals  from  different  groups. 

Every  animal  begins  by  being  unicellular,  for  the 
egg-cell,  the  reproducing  cell,  common  to  all,  corre- 
sponds to  a  unicellular  being.  It  is  only  after  fecunda- 
tion, when  it  has  become  an  ovum,  that  this  first 
cell  evolves  by  dividing  itself  into  consecutive 
segments,  each  of  which  is  a  new  cell.  This  pheno- 
menon is  analogous  with  the  multiplication  of  uni- 

1  In  later  years  Metchnikoff  often  dwelt  on  the  fact  that  Fritz  Miiller 
was  not  fully  appreciated  and  that  it  was  he  who  had  most  efficaciously 
contributed  to  the  confirmation  of  Darwinian  theories. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  51 

cellular  beings  through  division  ;  only,  those  segments 
of  the  ovum  do  not  separate  but  constitute  a  whole 
under  the  aspect  of  a  hollow  sphere,  called  a  blastula, 
which  is  the  first  manifestation  of  a  multicellular 
being.  This  blastula  is  formed  of  superposed  layers, 
each  of  which  gives  birth  to  specialised  organs  in  the 
embryo.  The  outside  layer,  or  ectoderm,  produces 
teguments  and  the  nervous  system ;  the  internal  layer, 
or  endoderm,  gives  birth  to  endothelial  cells,  the  digestive 
and  internal  organs  ;  between  those  two  layers  comes 
a  third,  intermediary  layer,  the  mesoderm,  from  which 
the  skeleton  is  developed  and  also  the  muscle  and 
blood  tissues. 

The  evolution  of  these  layers  in  Vertebrates  was 
well  known,  but  very  little  so  in  Invertebrates,  though 
it  is  only  through  the  development  of  inferior  forms 
that  the  origin  and  general  evolution  of  living  beings 
can  be  elucidated.  That  is  why,  during  many  years, 
the  principal  theme  of  MetchnikofTs  researches  was 
the  comparative  study  of  the  embryonic  layers  of 
inferior  animals  and  the  ulterior  fate  of  their  con- 
stituting elements.  By  following  this  train  of  thought, 
he  was  able  to  demonstrate  that  the  development  of 
lower  animals  takes  place  on  the  same  plan  and 
follows  the  same  laws  as  that  of  higher  animals  ; 
thus,  that  there  is  a  real  communion  between  all 
living  beings,  which  is  the  concrete  confirmation  of 
the  theory  of  evolution. 

By  their  work,  Kovalevsky  and  Metchnikoff  con- 
tributed to  the  foundation  of  Comparative  Embryo- 
logy. The  comparative  study  of  cells  produced  from 
the  divers  embryonic  layers,  and  observations  on  the 
ulterior  development  of  the  functions  of  those  cells, 
gradually  led  Metchnikoff  to  his  theory  of  phagocytes 


52  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

and  to  pathological  biology.  An  uninterrupted  thread 
can  be  followed  right  through  his  life-work,  from  the 
beginning  until  the  end. 

In  spite  of  his  absorbing  work  he  took  great 
interest  in  his  surroundings,  and  during  this  first  stay 
in  Italy  he  became  acquainted  with  two  interesting 
personalities,  Bakounine  the  anarchist  and  the  cele- 
brated physiologist  Setchenoff.  Both  resided  at 
Sorrento.  Kovalevsky  and  Metchnikoff,  who  greatly 
desired  to  know  them,  decided  to  call  on  them,  after 
much  hesitation. 

Bakounine,  a  giant  with  a  leonine  head  and  a 
thick  mane  of  grey  hair,  struck  them  as  being  a  fiery 
enthusiast  but  an  intolerant  sectarian,  easily  roused  ; 
for  instance,  any  small  and  unimportant  local  meeting 
was  enough  for  him  to  predict  an  imminent  revolution 
in  Russia.  His  theories  were  epitomised  in  these 
words,  "  We  must  not  leave  stone  upon  stone  "  ;  but 
when  asked  what  should  be  built  up  on  those  ruins 
he  could  only  say,  "  We  shall  see  later."  Elie  looked 
upon  him  as  a  force  powerful  by  its  fire  and  vitality, 
but  thought  his  mind  neither  judicial  nor  profound. 

Very  different  was  the  impression  produced  on 
him  by  Setchenoff.  He  carried  great  weight  through 
the  depth  of  his  intelligence,  his  persuasive  eloquence 
and  general  thoroughness.  He  was  of  a  Mongol  type 
and  his  features  were  plain,  but  his  splendid  eyes, 
deep  and  intelligent,  shrewd  and  yet  kindly,  illumined 
his  face  with  an  unforgettable  inward  beauty.  When 
Elie  went  to  see  him,  it  was  with  the  uneasy  feeling 
that  his  own  knowledge  of  chemistry  and  physics  was 
very  restricted,  having  been  very  superficially  acquired 
during  his  rapid  passage  through  the  University. 
In  spite  of  this  cause  for  bashfulness,  a  mental  com- 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  53 

pact  and  exchange  of  ideas  was  immediately  estab- 
lished between  the  two,  and  a  sympathy  was  born 
between  them  which  developed  into  a  lifelong  friend- 
ship. Elie  expatiated  upon  his  plans  for  the  study  of 
the  embryology  of  inferior  animals  from  the  evolution 
point  of  view,  and  received  from  the  older  scientist 
much  encouragement,  for  which  he  never  ceased  to 
be  grateful. 

He  worked  a  great  deal  during  this  first  stay  at 
Naples,  in  spite  of  periods  of  great  fatigue.  As  a 
relaxation,  he  plunged  into  philosophical  reading. 
After  Kovalevsky's  departure,  he  joined  Bakounine's 
circle,  the  members  of  which  took  their  meals  in  a 
restaurant  which  rejoiced  in  the  sonorous  name  of 
Trattoria  della  Harmonia.  In  the  autumn  of  the  year 
1865,  a  cholera  epidemic  broke  out  in  Naples.  Every 
one  was  nervous  and  depressed,  and  this  general 
depression  was  increased  still  more  by  some  of  the 
customs  of  the  country  —  continuous  lugubrious 
church  bells,  funeral  processions  in  which  penitents 
took  part,  carrying  smoking  torches  and  wearing 
hoods  over  their  heads  with  holes  for  their  eyes,  etc. 
Elie,  on  whom  the  epidemic  had  made  a  great  impres- 
sion, was  even  more  disturbed  by  the  death  of  one  of 
the  members  of  their  little  circle,  a  popular  English- 
woman, liked  by  everybody.  She  had  no  fear  of 
cholera  and  was  bright  and  merry.  But  one  day  she 
did  not  come  to  the  Trattoria  della  Harmonia ;  she  had 
been  struck  by  the  scourge  and  was  dead  the  next  day. 

Elie  was  so  struck  by  her  death  that  his  nerves, 
already  very  tense,  gave  way  and  he  left  Naples,  being, 
moreover,  worn  out  with  overwork. 

He  started  for  Gottingen,  for  he  wanted  to  begin  the 
study  of  Vertebrates  under  the  direction  of  Professor 


54  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Keferstein.  Keferstein  straightway  gave  him  a  valu- 
able lizard  specimen  to  anatomise.  Elie  was  not 
good  at  technique,  on  account  of  his  nervous  tem- 
perament ;  he  used  occasionally  to  lose  his  patience 
and  his  temper,  to  that  point  that  he  flung  his  material 
across  the  room.  It  happened  so  on  this  occasion ; 
having  completely  wasted  the  valuable  lizard,  he  con- 
ceived a  still  greater  horror  of  technique  and  soon  left 
Professor  Keferstein  for  Henle,  the  celebrated  anatom- 
ist. He  worked  with  him  for  a  short  tune  at  the 
histology  of  frogs'  kidneys,  a  subject  chosen  by  the 
Professor.  Soon  the  young  man  realised  that  he  was 
no  longer  capable  of  submitting  to  school  discipline 
and  resumed  his  independent  researches.  When  he 
had  to  do  with  those  problems  which  absorbed  him 
he  was  always  able  to  conquer  his  aversion  for  tech- 
nique and  to  do  what  was  required.  He  studied  the 
embryology  of  the  green-fly  from  the  genealogical  point 
of  view,  and  went  to  Munich  for  the  summer  term 
in  order  to  work  with  the  celebrated  zoologist  von 
Siebold,  a  typical  and  venerable  old  German  scientist. 
The  latter  was  too  old  already  to  be  troubled  with 
pupils,  and  Elie  studied  his  insect  embryology  indepen- 
dently ;  however,  he  visited  the  old  man  assiduously, 
and  they  had  long  scientific  conversations.  Their 
relations  were  always  extremely  cordial,  and  they 
even  kept  up  a  regular  correspondence  for  many  years. 
During  his  stay  in  Germany,  music  was  the  young 
man's  only  recreation.  He  did  not  play  any  instru- 
ment ;  his  parents,  discouraged  by  the  failure  of  their 
elder  children,  had  not  had  him  taught,  and  besides, 
his  precocious  vocation  would  have  left  him  no  time. 
Yet  he  certainly  had  a  natural  talent  for  music,  which 
he  passionately  loved.  He  could  only  whistle,  but 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  55 

with  that  feeble  means  succeeded  in  reproducing  com- 
plicated compositions.  Having  assiduously  attended 
excellent  concerts,  he  had  made  himself  thoroughly 
acquainted  with  classical  music,  and  Beethoven  and 
Mozart  always  remained  his  favourite  composers. 
His  stay  in  Germany  taught  him  to  appreciate  the 
great  capacity  for  work  of  the  scientists  of  that 
country  ;  he  admired  the  organisation  of  their  labora- 
tories, allowing  every  force,  great  or  small,  to  be 
utilised  and  making  useful  collective  work  possible 
in  those  complicated  researches  which  demand  the 
collaboration  of  divers  specialists.  On  the  other  hand, 
he  felt  a  great  aversion  for  the  manners  and  customs 
of  German  students.  Their  corporations,  duels,  and 
long  sittings  in  beer-houses  were  distasteful  to  him ; 
he  could  not  understand  how  these  coarse  "  Burschen  " 
could  become  transformed  into  cultivated  intellec- 
tuals and  respectable  scientists.  People  to  whom  he 
expressed  this  wonder  merely  said,  "  Youth  must 
have  its  fling.  ..."  Moreover,  scientists  themselves 
were  not  particularly  courteous  to  each  other.  More 
than  anywhere  else  personal  questions  held  a  fore- 
most place,  and  kindliness  was  rare  between  colleagues. 
After  staying  some  time  in  Munich,  Elie  returned 
to  Naples,  war  having  broken  out  between  Northern 
and  Southern  Germany.  This  time,  in  order  to  spend 
less  on  the  journey,  he  took  a  steamer  at  Genoa,  but 
with  fatal  results,  for  a  storm  was  raging ;  he  suffered 
a  great  deal,  and,  when  he  reached  Naples,  violent  fits 
of  giddiness  made  him  incapable  of  doing  any  work  at 
all  for  some  time.  Cholera  reappeared,  and  the  land- 
lady of  the  rooms  he  shared  with  Kovalevsky  died  of 
it.  Much  depressed,  the  two  started  for  Ischia,  but 
Elie  soon  realised  with  terror  that  he  was  not  yet  well 


56  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

enough  to  work  ;  in  order  to  recover  quickly,  he  went 
to  Cava,  a  pretty  little  place,  renowned  for  its  salu- 
brious climate. 

There  he  met  Bakounine  again,  and  they  saw  a 
good  deal  of  each  other  in  a  friendly  way.  Bakou- 
nine nicknamed  him  "  Mamma  "  because  of  his  almost 
maternal  attentions,  a  nickname  which,  for  the  same 
reason,  was  given  him  later,  quite  independently,  by 
other  intimates.  Yet,  though  their  relations  were 
cordial  and  even  affectionate,  there  was  not  really 
much  in  common  between  the  two.  Elie  thought 
Bakounine's  ideas  superficial,  and  disliked  his  sectarian 
mentality  ;  they  ultimately  drifted  apart. 

His  health  having  gradually  recovered  owing  to  the 
rest,  he  returned  to  Naples  in  the  autumn,  after  the 
epidemic  had  abated,  and  at  last  resumed  his  work. 

Whilst  studying  the  history  of  the  development  of 
Cephalopoda  he  found  that  they  had  embryonic 
layers  similar  to  those  of  Vertebrates  ;  this  was  the 
first  time  that  the  fact  was  established.  It  was  ex- 
tremely important,  for  it  constituted  a  concrete  and 
indisputable  proof  of  the  existence  of  a  genetic 
connection  between  inferior  and  superior  animals. 
Metchnikoff  chose  this  subject  for  his  thesis,  and, 
having  completed  his  researches,  he  returned  to 
Russia  in  1867. 

By  this  time  he  had  made  great  use  of  his  three 
years'  stay  abroad.  Though  he  had  not  showed 
himself  a  docile  pupil,  yet  he  had  become  initiated 
into  the  organisation  of  scientific  work  in  Germany  ; 
he  had  carried  out  independent  researches  and  had 
been  able  to  choose  with  full  knowledge  the  future 
path  of  investigations  which  he  was  to  pursue  for 
many  years  in  the  field  of  Comparative  Embryology. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  57 

Already  the  observations  he  had  made  had  in 
themselves  a  real  importance.  For  instance,  his 
studies  in  divers  specimens  of  the  worm  type,  a  type 
which  offers  very  heterogeneous  forms,  had  permitted 
him  to  establish  links  of  continuity  between  certain 
groups  among  them.  Whilst  studying  those  animals 
at  Giessen  in  1865,  he  had  discovered  the  capital  fact 
which  proved  to  be  the  starting-point  of  all  his  future 
work — the  intercellular  digestion  of  an  inferior  worm, 
a  land  planarian,  the  Geodesmus  bilineatus.  He  had 
compared  this  digestion  with  that  of  the  superior 
Infusoria  and  had  seen  in  it  one  more  proof  of  the 
genetic  connection  between  the  type  of  the  Protozoa 
and  that  of  worms. 

He  did  not  then  realise  the  full  bearing  of  this 
observation,  which  really  constituted  the  basis  of  his 
future  phagocyte  theory  ;  this  was  only  to  appear 
eighteen  years  later. 

He  had  also  made  researches  on  numerous  speci- 
mens of  insects  and  on  the  scorpion,  establishing  the 
fact  that  they  all  had  embryonic  layers  ;  he  concluded 
that  he  was  "  entitled  to  extend  the  theory  of  em- 
bryonic layers  to  Arthropoda." 

Finally,  he  had  discovered  embryonic  layers  similar 
to  those  of  the  Vertebrates  in  inferior  Invertebrates, 
the  Cephalopoda  (Sepiola).  This  established  a  link 
of  continuity  between  the  higher  and  lower  animals. 


CHAPTER  XII 

Petersburg — Baer  prize — Return  home — Friendship  with  Cienkovsky 
— Odessa — Naturalists'  Congress  at  Petersburg — Departure  from 
Odessa — Zoological  Lecturer's  Chair  at  Petersburg — Messina — 
Enforced  rest — Reggio — Naples — Controversy  with  Kovalevsky — 
Visit  to  the  B.  family — Mile.  F6dorovitch — Educational  questions 
—Difficulties  of  life  hi  Petersburg. 

DURING  his  stay  abroad,  Metchnikoff  had  successfully 
carried  out  several  researches,  and  this  allowed  him 
to  apply  for  a  post  of  docent  at  the  new  University  of 
Odessa,  which  he  had  chosen  on  account  of  its  proxi- 
mity with  the  sea  and  its  marine  fauna.  Whilst 
awaiting  the  result  he  went  to  Petersburg  in  order  to 
pass  his  thesis  and  to  prepare  himself  to  become  a 
professor.  He  received  a  pleasant  welcome,  for  his 
lively  and  sociable  disposition  had  made  him  many 
friends.  The  brothers  Kovalevsky,  with  whom  he  was 
already  on  friendly  terms,  offered  him  hospitality  ; 
he  also  made  the  acquaintance  of  Professor  Beketoff, 
and  soon  became  a  member  of  his  family  circle. 

He  was  well  received  everywhere,  for  his  scientific 
precocity  excited  general  interest.  He  was  even 
elected  magister x  by  the  Faculty,  without  having  to 
pass  an  examination,  on  account  of  the  work  he  had 
done.  He  and  Kovalevsky  halved  Baer's  first  prize, 
and  they  were  invited  and  treated  with  the  utmost 
kindness  by  Baer  himself.  Metchnikoff  had  certainly 

1  A  degree  preceding  that  of  Doc.Sc. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  59 

entered  upon  a  successful  phase  ;  his  friends  nick- 
named him  "  the  star."  As  soon  as  he  was  made  a 
magister,  he  received  his  appointment  at  the  Odessa 
University,  and,  the  holidays  drawing  near,  he  was  at 
last  able  to  return  to  his  home.  Needless  to  say  how 
joyfully  and  lovingly  he  was  received  by  his  family. 
He  spent  two  months  with  them,  utilising  his  leisure  in 
preparing  himself  to  teach. 

In  his  hurry  to  arrive  in  Odessa  in  good  time  in 
order  to  take  his  bearings  before  starting  his  lectures, 
he  went  there  much  too  soon  and  found  nobody  at 
the  University  ;  he  then  decided  to  go  to  the  Crimea 
for  some  preliminary  studies  on  the  fauna  of  the  Black 
Sea.  Before  long,  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  the 
celebrated  botanist  Cienkovsky,  who  invited  him  to 
stay  in  his  villa.  Though  the  scientist  was  already 
46  years  old  and  Elie  only  22,  they  soon  became  fast 
friends.  Cienkovsky  was  a  man  of  great  European 
culture  ;  passionately  fond  of  science  as  he  was,  his 
critical  mind  submitted  everything  to  a  close  analysis. 
He  took  great  interest  in  young  Metchnikoff  and 
showed  him  a  marked  predilection,  but  that  did  not 
prevent  him  from  criticising  him  severely.  He  re- 
proached him  with  a  lack  of  self-control,  and  undertook 
the  paternal  task  of  civilising  the  impulsive,  fiery, 
sometimes  even  violent  young  man.  He  preached 
to  him  tolerance  towards  the  opinions  of  others,  a 
strict  self-discipline,  and  the  absolute  necessity  of 
bowing  to  certain  social  conventions  against  which 
Elie  blindly  rebelled.  Cienkovsky  acquired  great 
prestige  in  his  young  friend's  eyes  ;  years  later,  even, 
Metchnikofi  took  pleasure  in  quoting  his  axioms  and 
in  trying  to  conform  with  them. 

He  worked  with  ardour  during  his  stay  in  the 


60  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Crimea  ;  though  the  heat  was  great,  50°  C.  (122°  F.) 
in  the  sun,  he  undertook  zoological  excursions 
and  surprised  every  one  by  his  endurance  and 
energy. 

At  the  end  of  the  holidays  he  returned  to  Odessa 
and  began  his  professorate  with  much  zeal  and 
success.  His  lucid,  living  lectures  stimulated  his 
pupils,  third-year  students,  who  were  all  older  than 
himself.  Friendly  relations  soon  reigned  between 
them  and  their  young  lecturer  ;  he  organised  practical 
studies,  and  his  laboratory  became  a  very  active 
centre  of  work. 

Thus  everything  was  going  well,  and  perhaps  he 
might  have  remained  at  Odessa  for  a  long  time  if  it 
had  not  been  for  the  following  incident,  due  to  his 
passionate  and  intolerant  disposition.  A  Congress  of 
Russian  naturalists  was  to  take  place  in  Petersburg 
at  the  end  of  the  year  1867.  Elie  eagerly  wished  to 
attend  it  as  a  delegate  and  took  steps  for  that  purpose  ; 
this  brought  him  into  conflict  with  his  chief,  who 
desired  the  mission  for  himself.  Knowing  that  the 
old  Professor  had  no  real  scientific  interests,  Elie 
thought  himself  justified  in  insisting,  and  counted 
upon  Cienkovsky's  support,  but  the  latter  was  of 
opinion  that  the  younger  man  should  give  way.  Elie, 
becoming  more  and  more  excited,  lost  all  sense  of 
proportion  and  committed  the  grave  error  of  telling 
his  pupils  about  what  he  considered  a  serious  injustice. 
The  latter,  out  of  sympathy  for  their  young  lecturer, 
hooted  the  old  Professor,  which  naturally  embittered 
the  quarrel.  However,  all  the  agitation  ended  in  both 
zoologists  being  sent  to  the  Congress  in  the  quality  of 
delegates. 

When  he  reached  Petersburg,  Elie  hurried  to  the 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  61 

house  of  his  friends  B ,  who  received  him  with 

open  arms  ;  it  was  a  great  joy  to  him  to  find  himself 
in  friendly  surroundings  after  the  recent  strife.  Im- 
pulsive and  impressionable  as  he  was,  the  disagree- 
able incidents  he  had  traversed  made  him  yearn  to 
leave  Odessa,  a  desire  which  was  to  be  promptly 
realised.  His  communications  had  great  success  at 
the  Congress  ;  the  President  even  invited  him  to 
read  a  paper  at  the  general  meeting  ;  but,  though 
strongly  attracted  by  this  proposal,  which  would 
have  allowed  the  young  scientist  to  expose  his  ideas 
on  the  comparative  development  of  the  embryonic 
layers,  he  refused  it,  considering  that  that  complicated 
question  was  not  yet  sufficiently  matured. 

Nevertheless,  the  Congress  had  brought  him  into 
prominence  and  was  the  cause  of  his  obtaining  a 
Professorship  of  Zoology  at  Petersburg.  Moreover, 
he  had  the  additional  good  fortune  of  being  given  a 
scientific  mission  and  went  abroad  to  work  until  the 
autumn  term. 

He  went  to  Naples  in  the  spring  of  1868,  thinking 
to  find  Kovalevsky  there,  instead  of  which  he  found 
a  letter  from  his  friend  awaiting  him.  The  latter  had 
had  to  go  to  Messina  for  urgent  embryological  work 
and  begged  Elie  to  look  after  his  wife  and  new-born 
child.  Metchnikoff  did  so  most  willingly  until  he  was 
able  to  send  them  off  to  Messina.  He  himself  followed 
soon  after,  for  Kovalevsky  wrote  him  that  zoological 
specimens  and  conditions  of  work  were  far  better  at 
Messina  than  Naples.  This  time,  Metchnikoff  under- 
took the  study  of  Sponges  and  Echinodermata.  The 
two  friends  worked  unceasingly,  but  Elie's  sight  was 
too  weak  for  such  excessive  fatigue  ;  he  was  again 
obliged  to  interrupt  his  studies  for  a  while,  and  during 


62  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

that  period  of  enforced  rest  he  felt  for  the  first  time 
the  need  of  a  sentimental  affection  in  his  life. 

He  dreamed  of  a  helpmeet  who  would  conform  with 
his  tastes.  At  Petersburg  he  had  become  very  fond 
of  Professor  B.'s  young  daughters,  the  eldest  of  whom 
was  about  thirteen  years  old,  and  he  wondered  if  he 
could  not  train  one  of  those  little  girls  to  become  the 
realisation  of  his  ideal.  He  was  too  active  by  nature, 
however,  to  linger  very  long  over  reveries  or  over 
a  prolonged  rest ;  he  therefore  undertook  a  short 
journey  through  Reggio  and  Calabria,  on  his  way 
towards  Naples. 

His  eyesight  being  now  restored,  he  began  work 
again  as  soon  as  he  arrived.  This  period,  however, 
was  not  a  pleasant  one  :  to  begin  with,  he  obtained 
in  the  study  of  Ascidia  a  result  which  differed  con- 
siderably from  that  obtained  by  Kovalevsky,1  and 
this  scientific  controversy  grieved  and  preoccupied 
them  both.  Besides,  Elie's  nerves  suffered  from  his 
constant  anxiety  about  his  eyes,  the  tropical  heat  and 
the  noisy  life  of  Naples.  Incessant  serenades  used  to 
keep  him  awake  at  night,  and,  on  one  occasion,  his 
exasperation  reached  such  a  point  that  he  poured  a 
bucket  of  water  over  the  head  of  some  persistent 
musicians.  Tired  with  all  these  things,  he  left  Naples 
for  Trieste,  where  he  carried  out  successful  researches 
into  the  transformations  of  Echinodermata,  from  the 
point  of  view  of  Comparative  Embryology  and  genetic 
connections  between  inferior  animals. 

Having  obtained  results  which  interested  him,  he 
returned  to  Russia  and  joined  the  B.  family  in  the 

1  The  latter  affirmed  that  the  nervous  system  of  Ascidia  originated  from 
the  upper  layer,  whilst  Elie  believed  that  it  was  the  lower  layer  which  gave 
birth  to  it.  It  was  Kovalevsky  who  was  right,  as  Elie  himself  declared 
later. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  63 

country,  near  Moscow.  Their  young  friend  Mile. 
Fedorovitch,  whom  he  had  already  met  in  Petersburg, 
was  staying  with  them,  and  she  and  Elie  became  very 
good  friends.  His  affection  for  the  B.  children  led 
him  to  ponder  over  general  educational  questions. 
He  was  struck  for  the  first  time  by  the  lack  of  harmony 
in  human  nature,  which  was  due,  he  thought,  to  the 
considerable  difference  between  the  organism  of  the 
child  and  that  of  the  adult,  a  difference  which  does 
not  exist  in  animals  to  the  same  degree.1  As  soon 
as  he  returned  to  Petersburg  he  tried  to  study  this 
subject,  and  made  comparisons  between  the  brain  of  a 
man  and  that  of  a  dog  at  various  ages,  but  without 
result. 

He  was  not  long  in  realising  that  the  conditions 
of  work  in  his  new  post  were  extremely  unsatisfactory. 
He  had  no  proper  laboratory  and  had  to  work  between 
two  specimen  cases  in  a  non-heated  zoological  museum ; 
there  was  no  room  for  practical  work.  All  his  enthusi- 
asm, all  his  aspirations  towards  scientific  activity  and 
rational  teaching  struck  against  indifference,  lack  of 
organisation,  and  lack  of  means.  He  protested  with 
his  usual  vehemence,  but  could  obtain  nothing ;  being 
equally  unable  to  adapt  himself  to  his  uncongenial 
surroundings,  he  found  himself  getting  more  and  more 
discontented  and  unnerved.  Moreover,  his  every- 
day life  was  most  uncomfortable,  for  he  wished  to  do 
without  servants,  on  principle  and  in  order  to  econo- 
mise, and  to  do  his  household  work  himself  ;  but  he 
soon  tired  of  taking  the  necessary  care  of  his  rooms, 
which  became  a  regular  chaos.  He  left  off  preparing 
his  own  meals  and  went  out  for  them  to  an  inferior 

1  He  ultimately  developed  these  considerations  in  a  paper  entitled 
Education  from  an  Anthropological  Point  of  View,  of  which  mention  will 
be  made  hereafter. 


64  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

restaurant  in  the  neighbourhood.  Yet,  in  spite  of 
all  his  efforts  and  privations,  he  never  seemed  to  make 
both  ends  meet.  He  resigned  himself  to  giving  lessons 
at  the  School  of  Mines  in  order  to  increase  his  resources; 
the  school  was  a  long  way  off,  he  had  to  walk  the 
distance  in  the  coldest  weather  in  order  to  lecture 
to  students  who  did  not  interest  him.  The  work 
wearied  him  without  giving  him  any  moral  compen- 
sation. Altogether,  the  life  in  Petersburg,  on  which 
he  had  founded  great  hopes,  brought  him  nothing 
but  disappointments  and  made  him  become  more 
and  more  pessimistic  and  misanthropical. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

Slight  illness — Engagement  to  Mile.  Fedorovitch — Marriage — Illness 
of  the  bride — Pecuniary  difficulties — Spezzia — Montreux — Work  in 
Petersburg  University — The  Riviera — Ccelomata  and  Actelomata 
— St.  Vaast — Panassovka — Madeira — Mertens — Teneriffe — Return 
to  Odessa — Bad  news,  hurried  journey  to  Madeira — Death  of  his 
wife — Return  through  Spain — Attempted  suicide — Ephemerida\ 

IT  was  only  in  the  house  of  his  friends  the  B.'s  that 
Elie  felt  at  his  ease.  He  was  devotedly  fond  of 
their  children,  whom  he  used  to  take  for  walks  on 
Sundays  and  to  the  theatre  now  and  then  ;  he  was 
always  ready  to  read  to  them  and  to  indulge  them  in 
every  possible  way. 

He  continued  to  entertain  the  dream  of  marrying 
one  of  them  some  day,  and  was  particularly  interested 
in  the  eldest,  a  girl  of  thirteen,  intelligent,  gifted,  and 
lively  ;  however,  as  he  knew  her  better,  he  realised 
the  incompatibility  of  their  respective  tempers,  an 
incompatibility  which  brought  about  frequent  dis- 
putes. These  were  generally  smoothed  down  by  a 
mutual  friend,  Mile.  Fedorovitch,  who  invariably 
showed  Elie  a  marked  and  cordial  sympathy.  He 
became  ill  at  this  juncture  and  she  nursed  him  with 
a  devotion  which  brought  them  together  even  more, 
as  will  be  seen  from  the  following  letter  to  his  mother  : 

DEAR  MOTHER — I  Lave  just  had  an  inflammation  of  the 
throat  which  lasted  two  weeks  ;  it  is  quite  gone  now  and  I 
would  not  even  have  mentioned  it  to  you  if  it  had  not  been 
connected  with  what  follows. 

65  F 


66  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

When  I  fell  ill,  the  B.'s,  knowing  me  to  be  alone  and  uncared 
for,  brought  me  to  their  house.  During  my  stay  with  them, 
I  acquired  the  conviction  that  my  darling  little  girls  did  not 
love  me,  especially  the  eldest,  who  interested  me  even  more 
than  her  three  sisters.  .  .  .  The  dreams  I  told  you  of  have 
vanished ! 

It  was  a  grief  to  me,  for,  apart  from  my  scientific  interests, 
I  cherished  them  more  than  anything.  I  have  no  acquaint- 
ances and  do  not  require  any,  but  I  long  to  have  some  one 
with  me  to  whom  I  could  become  attached  and  who  could 
share  my  pleasures  and  leisure. 

My  grief  would  have  been  greater  still  if  I  had  not  seen 
that  Ludmilla  Fedorovitch,  whom  I  mentioned  to  you  this 
summer,  showed  me  much  sympathy  in  all  my  troubles. 

We  were  already  very  good  friends,  and  have  now  drawn 
nearer  together  ;  who  knows  ?  perhaps  the  800  roubles  which 
are  going  to  be  added  to  my  salary  will  be  very  useful. 

I  will  keep  you  informed  of  everything,  dear  Mother,  for 
I  am  sure  of  your  sympathy  ;  I  love  you  better  than  the  whole 
world  and  I  have  full  confidence  in  you. 

Au  revoir,  dear  Mother,  I  kiss  your  hands. — Your 

ELIE  METCHNIKOFF. 

Mile.  Fedorovitch  became  ill  in  her  turn ;  the 
sympathy  which  Elie  showed  her  on  this  occasion 
brought  them  still  nearer  to  each  other,  and  he  soon 
decided  to  marry  her.  He  informed  his  mother  of 
this ;  much  alarmed,  she  tried  to  dissuade  him,  for 
she  feared  that  by  marrying  a  girl  in  delicate  health, 
her  son  would  be  assuming  too  heavy  a  task  in  his 
difficult  circumstances. 

He  answered  as  follows  : 

I  received  your  letter  to-day,  dear  Mother.  It  grieves 
me  very  much.  My  project  inspires  you  with  doubt,  you 
counsel  prudence  and,  though  you  say  you  believe  me  to  be 
reasonable,  yet  you  fear  that  I  am  acting  on  an  impulse.  If 
I  really  am  reasonable,  why  fear  a  blind  impulse  ?  On  the 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  67 

other  hand,  if  I  am  blindly  carried  away,  it  is  not  likely  that 
I  shall  listen  to  reason. 

I  did  tell  you  that  I  had  great  affection  for  the  B.  girls, 
and  it  was  true.  But  did  I  ever  tell  you  that  they  had  the 
same  for  me  ?  You  are  mistaken  in  thinking  that  I  did  not 
like  Ludmilla  Fedorovitch  at  first.  I  was  not  in  love  with 
her  but  we  were  very  good  friends,  and  whilst  I  did  not  con- 
sider her  as  my  feminine  ideal,  I  was  sure  of  her  absolutely 
honest,  loyal,  and  kindly  disposition.  The  very  fact  that  I 
knew  Ludmilla  for  a  long  time  before  I  thought  of  marrying 
her,  should  prove  to  you  that  there  is  some  chance  of  my 
being  neither  blind  nor  partial. 

Her  love  for  me  is  beyond  doubt,  as  you  will  see  when  you 
know  her. 

I  also  am  very  fond  of  her,  and  that  is  a  solid  basis  for 
future  happiness. 

Yet  I  will  not  answer  for  it  that  we  shall  spend  our  life 
like  a  pair  of  turtledoves.  A  rosy,  boundless  beatitude  forms 
no  part  of  my  conception  of  the  distant  future. 

Yet  I  do  not  see  the  necessity  of  waiting  till  I  become  a 
thorough  misanthrope,  and  I  am  already  inclined  that  way. 

Please  do  not  believe  that,  if  I  do  not  dream  of  a  rosy 
happiness  it  is  that  I  feel  none  at  all ;  that  is  not  the  case  ; 
I  am  in  a  happy  medium. 

I  like  Ludmilla  and  I  feel  comfortable  with  her  ;  but  at 
the  same  time  I  preserve  the  faculty  of  feeling  every  trouble 
and  worry  in  life.  I  do  not  at  all  think  that  it  is  enough 
to  love  in  order  to  be  happy.  Therefore  I  have  begun  to  take 
steps  to  obtain  a  Professor's  chair,  and  I  am  very  desirous 
of  being  successful  in  that  financial  operation. 

Soon  after  that,  he  wrote  the  following  letter  to  his 
mother  : 

DEAR  MOTHER — In  my  last  letter  I  had  already  spoken 
to  you  of  Ludmilla  Fedorovitch.  I  can  now  give  you  infor- 
mation about  her  which  will  surely  interest  you. 

She  is  not  bad-looking,  but  that  is  all.  She  has  fine 
hair  ;  her  complexion  is  not  pretty.  We  are  about  the  same 


68  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

age,  she  is  a  little  over  23.  She  was  born  at  Orenburg  ;  then 
she  lived  for  a  long  time  with  her  family  at  Kiahta  (Siberia), 
after  which  she  was  abroad  for  nearly  two  years  and  finally 
settled  in  Moscow.  Ludmilla,  or  Lussia,  was,  as  you  remember, 
a  very  zealous  intermediary  between  me  and  the  B.  girls  to 
whom  I  was  so  attached. 

She  loved  me  already  then,  though  she  said  to  herself  that 
I  had  too  much  affection  for  the  B.  children  ever  to  return 
her  feelings. 

And  she  was  perfectly  right,  as  long  as  my  affection  for 
those  children  lasted. 

But,  when  it  ceased,  I  naturally  took  more  notice  of  Lussia's 
sympathy  for  me,  and  I  am  not  surprised  that  I  have  acquired 
much  affection  for  her. 

She  has  faults  which  must  seem  graver  to  me  than  to  you, 
but  what  is  to  be  done  ? 

Fortunately  she  herself  sees  them.  The  greatest  of  her 
faults  is  a  too  great  placidity,  a  lack  of  vivacity  and  initiative  ; 
she  adapts  herself  too  easily  to  her  surroundings.  But, 
being  placid,  she  is  also  firm  ;  she  can  bear  a  great  deal  whilst 
preserving  complete  self-control.  She  is  extremely  kind  and 
good-natured ;  I  have  not  yet  found  a  vulgar  trait  in  her 
character. 

I  have  told  you  of  her  faults,  you  must  therefore  not 
think  me  partial  if  I  find  qualities  in  her. 

The  fact  is — and  I  cannot  forget  it — that  always,  when  I 
had  any  kind  of  trouble,  she  soothed  me  by  her  attitude 
towards  me. 

Even  though  I  have  dark  previsions  for  the  future  (as  you 
know,  I  am  not  given  to  seeing  life  through  rose-coloured 
glasses),  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  by  living  with  Lussia  I 
should  become  calmer,  at  least  for  a  fairly  long  time. 

I  should  cease  to  suffer  from  the  misanthropy  which  has 
invaded  me  lately. 

I  intend  to  have  no  children — it  is  an  embryologist  who 
is  speaking.  On  the  contrary,  I  want  to  preserve  the  utmost 
liberty.  Nevertheless,  one  must  conform  with  certain  legal 
conventions,  which  will  probably  take  place  in  January. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  69 

Lussia  has  no  fortune,  but  we  shall  be  entirely  guaranteed 
by  the  increase  in  my  salary. 

It  is  very  regrettable  that  the  event  should  be  retarded  by 
the  customary  formalities  ;  in  any  case  it  will  certainly  end 
by  taking  place. 

I  beg  you  to  write  to  me,  dear  mother  that  I  love,  anything 
that  comes  into  your  head  a  propos  of  my  affair. 

Rejoice  that  I  am  now  very  happy  and  wish  that  it  may 
last. 

I  ask  the  same  of  Papa,  whom  I  beg  you  to  salute  from  me. 
I  embrace  you,  dear  Mamma,  and  I  remain  your  very  affec- 
tionate son,  E.  METCHNIKOFF. 

As  Elie  learnt  to  know  his  fiancee  better,  he  became 
more  and  more  attached  to  her.  Their  happiness 
seemed  likely  to  be  complete,  but  a  cruel  Fate  had 
decided  otherwise.  The  girl's  health  was  not  im- 
proving :  her  supposed  bronchitis  was  assuming  a 
chronic  character.  Yet  tbe  marriage  was  not  post- 
poned, and  the  bride  had  to  be  carried  to  the  church 
in  a  chair  for  the  ceremony,  being  too  breathless  and 
too  weak  to  walk  so  far. 

Elie  did  his  utmost  to  procure  comforts  for  his-  wife, 
and  hoped  that  she  could  still  be  saved  by  care  and 
a  rational  treatment.  It  was  the  beginning  of  an 
hourly  struggle  against  disease  and  poverty ;  his 
means  being  insufficient,  he  tried  to  eke  them  out  by 
writing  translations.  His  eyesight  weakened  again 
from  overwork,  and  it  was  with  atropin  in  his  eyes 
that  he  sat  up  night  after  night,  translating.  There 
was  but  one  well-lighted  room  in  his  flat,  and  he 
turned  it  into  a  small  laboratory  for  the  use  of  his 
pupils  ;  his  own  researches  he  had  to  give  up,  his  time 
being  entirely  taken  up  by  teaching  and  translations. 

He  hid  his  precarious  position  from  his  parents 
in  order  not  to  add  to  their  heavy  expenses  nor  to 


70  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

confirm  their  previsions  concerning  his  marriage.  His 
wife's  illness,  the  impossibility  of  carrying  on  scientific 
work,  the  lack  of  friendly  sympathy  to  which  he 
thought  himself  entitled,  all  this  weighed  on  him, 
making  him  bitter,  suspicious,  and  distrustful ;  he 
thought  himself  persecuted.  The  situation  became 
intolerable  and,  in  spite  of  his  pride,  he  forced  him- 
self to  apply  for  a  subsidy  to  take  his  wife  abroad 
and  to  go  on  with  his  researches.  Having  obtained 
it  in  1869,  he  immediately  left  Petersburg,  which  he 
now  hated. 

Youth  is  elastic  :  the  young  couple  started  full 
of  joy,  gay  as  children,  and  ready  to  forget  all  their 
trials.  Alas,  it  was  not  for  long :  having  halted  at 
Vilna  in  order  that  the  patient  should  have  a  rest, 
she  had  an  attack  of  haemorrhage  of  the  lungs,  to  the 
great  alarm  of  her  husband,  who  nevertheless  did  his 
best  to  reassure  her.  They  continued  the  journey  as 
soon  as  her  condition  allowed  it,  only  to  be  interrupted 
by  another  relapse.  At  last  they  reached  Spezzia, 
chosen  on  account  of  the  climate  and  the  marine  fauna. 

Little  by  little,  Ludmilla  Metchnikoff's  health  im- 
proved and  her  husband  was  able  to  resume  work. 
He  studied  aquatic  animals  in  view  of  the  genealogy 
of  inferior  groups,  and,  amongst  others,  studied  the 
Tornaria,  which  was  believed  to  be  the  larva  of  the 
star-fish.  However,  to  his  astonishment,  he  ascer- 
tained that,  in  spite  of  great  similarity,  it  was  not 
the  larva  of  an  Echinoderm,  but  that  of  one  of  the 
Balanoglossi,  of  the  worm  type.  This  fact  estab- 
lished a  link  between  the  Echinodermata  and  worms, 
a  very  important  result  from  the  point  of  view  of 
the  continuity  of  animal  types. 

Metchnikoff  felt  his  courage  returning  and  also 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  71 

his  natural  high  spirits.  His  wife,  who  was  a  clever 
draughtswoman,  helped  him  with  the  drawings  for 
his  memoir,  and  both  felt  happy  and  contented  ;  this 
stay  at  Spezzia  was  a  real  oasis  in  their  life. 

When  the  heat  became  excessive  they  went  to 
Reichenhall,  a  summer  resort  prescribed  by  the 
doctor.  There,  Metchnikoff  completed  his  previous 
researches  on  the  development  of  the  scorpion,  and 
finally  established  the  fact  that  this  animal  possesses 
the  three  embryonic  layers  which  correspond  to  those 
of  the  Vertebrates. 

As  his  young  wife's  health  was  still  too  precarious 
to  allow  her  to  spend  the  winter  in  Kussia,  Metchnikoff, 
obliged  to  return  to  Petersburg,  installed  .her  at  Mon- 
treux  and  asked  his  sister-in-law,  Mile.  Fedorovitch, 
to  stay  with  her.  The  enforced  separation  deeply 
grieved  the  young  couple,  whose  only  consolation  was 
daily  correspondence. 

Metchnikoff  resumed  a  life  of  hard  work ;  he  was 
now  an  agrege  at  the  Petersburg  University  and 
had  to  leave  the  School  of  Mines  ;  this  diminished  his 
resources,  but  at  the  same  time  he  obtained  an  extra 
salary  of  800  roubles  as  Extraordinary  Professor. 
His  position  in  the  University  was  nevertheless  very 
difficult,  for  his  situation  was  coveted  by  different 
parties  with  which  he  had  nothing  to  do.  They 
wanted  it  for  one  of  their  adherents.  His  devoted 
friend  Setchenoff,  Prof  essor  of  Physiology,  then  thought 
of  proposing  him  to  the  Faculty  of  Medicine  as  a 
Lecturer  in  Zoology,  and  whilst  Metchnikoff  awaited 
the  result  of  his  efforts,  he  obtained  leave  to  go  to  the 
seaside  to  do  research  work. 

He  joined  his  wife  and  took  her  to  San  Remo 
and  to  Villafranca.  Her  health  had  improved  and 


72  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

she  was  even  able  to  take  part  in  his  work.  He  was 
engaged  in  studying  Medusae  and  Siphonophora, 
animals  which  interested  him,  not  only  from  the  point 
of  view  of  the  origin  of  embryonic  layers,  but  also 
from  that  of  general  morphology,  for  he  was  still 
pursuing  the  problem  of  genetic  links  between 
animals.  He  had  already  been  able  to  prove  the 
presence  of  embryonic  layers  in  many  inferior  animals  ; 
moreover,  he  had  found,  while  studying  the  meta- 
morphoses of  Echinodermata,  the  proof  that  the  struc- 
tural plan,  hitherto  considered  immutable,  could 
become  transformed  in  course  of  development.  Thus 
the  bilateral  plan  of  the  larva  of  Echinoderma  becomes 
a  radial  plan  in  the  adult.  The  structural  plan  there- 
fore is  not  an  absolutely  differentiating  character, 
since  specimens  of  the  same  type  can  show  a  different 
plan  according  to  their  stage  of  development.  One 
of  the  genetic  questions  still  unsolved  was  that  of  the 
body  cavity.  Always  present  in  higher  animals,  it 
is  totally  absent  in  certain  lower  groups,  such  as 
Sponges,  Polypi,  and  Medusae.  It  was  being  ques- 
tioned whether  their  dissimilar  morphological  char- 
acters did  not  correspond  with  a  duality  of  origin 
separating  animals  which  possessed  a  body  cavity 
(Ccelomata)  from  those  which  did  not  (Aco3lomata). 

Kovalevsky,  it  is  true,  had  observed  that  the 
body  cavity  of  many  animals  (Amphioxus,  Sagitta, 
Brachiopoda)  took  its  origin  in  the  lateral  sacs  of  the 
digestive  cavity,  sacs  which  detach  themselves  from 
it  in  order  to  form  the  body  cavity.  But,  in  order 
to  establish  a  genetic  connection  between  those 
animals  that  have  a  body  cavity  and  those  which 
are  devoid  of  it,  it  was  necessary  to  show  the  homo- 
logy  of  corresponding  organs  in  both  groups. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  73 

Through  his  researches  on  the  development  of 
Coelomata  (Echinodermata)  on  the  one  hand  and 
Acoelomata  (Ctenophora  and  Medusae)  on  the  other, 
Metchnikoff  succeeded  in  proving  that  the  lateral  sacs 
of  the  digestive  cavity  which  give  birth  to  the  body 
cavity  of  the  Ccelomata  (Echinodermata)  correspond 
to  the  canals  and  vaso-digestive  sacs  of  the  Accelo- 
mata  (Ctenophora  and  Medusae).  The  difference 
consists  in  that  the  latter  do  not  detach  themselves 
in  order  to  form  a  body  cavity,  which  is  therefore 
lacking. 

The  result  of  his  researches  satisfied  Metchnikoff  ; 
moreover,  he  began  to  feel  again  hopeful  of  his  wife's 
recovery.  The  only  dark  spot  was  that  Setchenoff's 
efforts  had  failed.  Metchnikoff  was  not  appointed 
by  the  Faculty  of  Medicine,  for  it  was  found  advisable 
to  replace  the  Chair  of  Zoology  by  one  on  Venereal 
Diseases.  On  the  other  hand,  he  was  nominated  for 
the  Odessa  University,  supported  by  Cienkovsky  and 
unanimously  elected. 

As  he  only  had  to  go  to  his  new  post  in  the  autumn, 
he  went  for  the  summer  to  St.  Vaast  in  Normandy 
to  study  Lucernaria  ;  unfortunately  the  stay  was  not 
a  success  ;  the  weather  was  cold  and  the  sea  very 
rough,  which  made  the  Lucernaria  impossible  to  find. 
Life  conditions  were  very  difficult,  all  the  male  popu- 
lation being  at  sea  and  the  women  being  in  the  fields. 
In  order  not  to  waste  this  journey  he  studied  Ascidians, 
and  found  that  he  had  previously  been  mistaken  at 
Naples  when  he  thought  that  the  nervous  system  of 
those  animals  originated  from  the  lower  embryonic 
layer.  Kovalevsky  had  been  right  in  affirming  the 
contrary,  and  Elie  hastened  to  write  to  tell  him  so. 

St.  Vaast,  open  to  every  wind,  was  not  favourable 


74  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

to  the  patient,  and  Metchnikoff  had  to  take  her  away. 
They  went  to  Russia  to  stay  with  her  parents  and  then 
to  Panassovka.  The  doctors  having  advised  a  course 
of  treatment  by  "  koumiss,"  or  fermented  mare's 
milk  prepared  in  a  special  way  by  the  Tartars,  Elie 
engaged  a  Tartar  servant  specially  for  that  purpose, 
but  in  vain.  In  spite  of  every  treatment,  his  wife's 
health  was  steadily  growing  worse.  The  cold  at  St. 
Vaast  had  been  followed  by  such  a  dry  heat  in  Russia 
that,  in  order  to  procure  a  little  coolness  for  the 
patient,  they  had  to  spread  wet  sheets  around  her. 
She  constantly  had  high  temperatures  and  frequent 
attacks  of  haemorrhage.  It  was  obvious  that  she 
must  leave  Russia,  and  Metchnikoff,  obliged  to  rejoin 
his  post  at  Odessa,  asked  Mile.  Fedorovitch  to  go 
with  her  to  Montreux. 

The  separation  was  all  the  harder  that  all  hope  of 
recovery  was  beginning  to  wane.  The  patient,  how- 
ever, had  been  told  of  the  magical  effect  of  Madeira 
in  cases  of  tuberculosis,  and  she  clung  to  the  idea  as 
to  a  plank  of  safety.  Elie  resolved  to  take  her  there. 
He  set  to  work  with  renewed  ardour  in  order  to  obtain 
the  sum  necessary  for  the  journey  ;  in  spite  of  all  his 
self-denial,  his  normal  resources  would  not  have 
sufficed,  and  he  had  recourse  to  translations  and 
literary  articles.  He  had  a  theme  ready,  which  he 
developed  in  a  paper  called  Education  from  the  Anthro- 
pological Point  of  View — in  fact  a  preliminary  sketch 
of  his  ideas  on  the  disharmonies  in  human  nature. 
In  it,  he  analysed  the  disharmonies  due  to  the  great 
difference  of  development  between  the  child  and  the 
adult :  whilst  the  young  of  animals  are  very  rapidly 
able  to  imitate  the  adults  and  to  live  like  them,  the 
man-child  is  incapable  of  it.  His  brain,  especially  in 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  75 

civilised  races,  demands  a  long  period  of  development 
in  order  to  equal  that  of  the  adult,  whilst  certain 
instincts  in  the  organism  mature,  on  the  contrary,  long 
before  their  function  is  possible.  Moreover,  a  child's 
sensibility  is  extremely  developed  whilst  his  will  is 
by  no  means  so.  These  causes  provoke  suffering  and 
a  series  of  regrettable  consequences. 

Apart  from  frenzied  efforts  and  unceasing  labour, 
Metchnikoff  was  going  through  a  painful  moral  crisis, 
due  to  the  impossibility  of  making  his  conduct  accord 
with  his  convictions.  Party  intrigues  continued  to 
be  rife  at  the  Odessa  University  :  Poles  were  being 
persecuted  by  Nationalists  ;  one  professor  was  refused 
admission  on  account  of  his  Polish  nationality,  and 
Cienkovsky  resigned  by  way  of  protest.  Metchnikoff 
shared  his  views  and  longed  to  follow  his  example, 
but  was  prevented  by  his  lack  of  means  and  felt  it 
deeply.  It  also  went  against  his  conscience  to  ask 
for  leave  as  frequently  as  his  wife's  condition  made  it 
necessary. 

She  wished  to  see  her  parents  once  again  before 
going  to  Madeira,  and  he  took  her  to  Russia  for  the 
last  time  :  she  never  saw  her  family  again. 

At  last  they  were  able  to  start.  The  long  journey 
was  very  fatiguing,  the  sea  voyage  was  rough,  but, 
when  she  landed  in  Madeira,  the  patient  thought  herself 
saved.  The  very  next  morning  Metchnikoff  started 
feverishly  on  a  voyage  of  discovery.  Nature  on  the 
island  was  extremely  beautiful ;  alone  the  sight  of 
numerous  sick  people  reminded  him  of  suffering  and 
death.  The  words  "  a  flower-decked  grave  "  haunted 
his  mind,  and  a  growing  despondency  warned  him  that 
he  had  nothing  to  expect  from  this  luxuriant  spot. 
From  the  aspect  of  the  rocky  coast,  beaten  by  the 


76  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

waves,  he  realised  that  the  beach  fauna  must  be  very 
poor  ;  his  only  refuge,  research  work,  was  likely  to  be 
denied  him. 

He  was  advised  to  hire  a  small  house,  which  would 
be  cheaper  than  a  boarding-house,  and  he  did  find 
a  pretty  furnished  villa  with  a  garden  ;  it  was  beyond 
his  means,  but  a  young  Russian  named  Mertens,  who 
had  been  a  fellow-traveller,  proposed  to  share  it  with 
them.  The  arrangement  proved  highly  satisfactory, 
and  Mertens,  at  first  merely  an  agreeable  neighbour, 
became  a  close  friend. 

Before  leaving  for  Madeira,  Metchnikoff  had 
obtained  a  scientific  mission  and  a  subsidy  from  the 
Society  of  Natural  Science  Lovers  of  Moscow,  and 
felt  it  a  moral  obligation  to  obtain  some  results.  The 
scantiness  of  the  marine  fauna  was  a  bitter  disappoint- 
ment ;  he  had  to  fall  back  upon  what  little  he  found, 
and  embarked  on  the  study,  hitherto  unknown,  of 
the  embryology  of  Myriapoda.  But  this  research 
work  brought  him  a  new  source  of  torment  instead  of 
satisfaction  :  he  could  not  master  the  technique,  which 
proved  to  be  very  difficult,  and  this  irritated  him  ; 
his  failures  disappointed  him,  made  him  vexed  with 
himself ;  his  nerves,  already  strung  to  the  highest 
point  by  suffering  and  anxiety,  made  the  disappoint- 
ment unbearable.  On  the  other  hand,  the  external 
aspect  of  life  formed  a  striking  contrast  with  the  state 
of  his  mind.  A  wealth  of  natural  beauty,  all  flowers 
and  perfumes,  in  an  incomparable  site,  congenial  sur- 
roundings and  home  comforts  formed  the  frame  for 
these  two  young  lives,  of  which  one  was  waning  whilst 
the  other  was  spent  in  a  useless  struggle  to  save  it. 

MetchnikofFs  natural  pessimism  was  growing  under 
the  influence  of  these  painful  circumstances.  His 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  77 

conception  of  life  was  a  sombre  one  ;  he  said  to  himself 
that  the  "  disharmonies  "  of  human  nature  must  in- 
fallibly end  in  a  general  decadence  of  humanity.  He 
set  forth  his  reflections  in  an  article  entitled  The  Time 
for  Marriage,  in  which  he  discussed  the  following 
concrete  fact :  With  the  progress  of  civilisation  and 
culture,  the  time  for  marriage  recedes  gradually, 
whereas  puberty  remains  as  early  as  before  ;  the 
result  is  that  the  time  between  puberty  and  marriage 
is  becoming  longer  and  longer,  and  constitutes  a 
growing  period  in  which  there  is  no  harmony.  The 
statistics  of  suicides  prove  that  there  is  a  close  con- 
nection between  them  and  the  period  of  disharmonies. 

Whilst  he  worked,  his  wife  tried  to  make  use  of 
her  leisure  :  she  interested  herself  in  poor  children, 
sketched  flowers,  read  novels  ...  life  flowed  peace- 
fully in  spite  of  the  underlying  drama. 

Yet  the  thought  that  he  was  not  fulfilling  his 
obligations  was  intolerable  to  Metchnikoff.  He 
thought  of  resigning  and  founding  a  small  book-shop 
at  Madeira  in  order  to  be  independent  and  not  obliged 
to  leave  his  wife,  but  lack  of  funds  made  this  plan 
impossible.  In  his  search  for  new  resources,  he  went 
to  Teneriffe  to  look  for  a  subject  for  an  article.  He 
met  with  several  disappointments  on  this  trip  ;  yet 
he  saw  the  Villa  Orotava,  with  its  celebrated  giant 
dragon-tree,  which  had  already  then  been  brought 
down  by  a  storm.  He  also  visited  the  Caves  of  the 
Guancios,  the  primitive  inhabitants  of  the  Canary 
Islands.  Having  gathered  the  necessary  observations, 
he  hastened  to  return  to  Madeira,  where  months  passed 
without  bringing  any  change. 

The  book-shop  idea  was  abandoned  as  being  im- 
practicable and  Metchnikofi  had  to  return  to  Odessa, 


78  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

asking  his  sister-in-law  to  come  to  Madeira  in  his 
place.  When  she  had  arrived,  he  confided  the  two 
girls  to  Mertens  and  to  the  care  of  the  devoted  Dr. 
Goldschmidt,  and  went  away  conscious  of  the  useless- 
ness  of  his  efforts  and  more  deeply  pessimistic  than 
ever. 

When  he  reached  Odessa,  in  October  1872,  he 
found  there  his  friend  Setchenoff,  whom  he  had  pre- 
viously proposed  for  a  Physiology  Lecturer's  chair, 
and  whose  affection  was  a  great  comfort  to  him  at 
this  sad  time.  The  correspondence  between  him 
and  his  wife  during  that  period  is  full  of  an  infinite 
tenderness,  as  if  they  felt  the  supreme  separation 
coming  near,  and  yearned  to  express  their  mutual  love. 

At  the  end  of  January  1873,  between  two  classes, 
Metchnikoff  received  a  letter  from  his  sister-in-law 
telling  him  to  come  in  haste  if  he  wished  to  find  his 
wife  still  living.  He  delivered  his  lecture  like  an  auto- 
maton, then  went  to  obtain  his  leave  and  hurried  off. 
He  accomplished  the  whole  journey  without  a  break. 
On  arriving  at  Madeira  he  found  his  wife  so  changed 
that  he  scarcely  knew  her,  and  it  was  only  through 
sheer  force  of  will  that  he  kept  his  alarm  from  her. 
She  suffered  so  much  that  she  had  to  be  given  morphia 
constantly  and  could  no  longer  leave  her  bed. 

Metchnikoff  himself  was  in  very  poor  health ;  his 
eyes  were  so  sensitive  from  overwork  that  he  had 
to  remain  in  the  dark,  only  going  into  the  garden  at 
dusk  to  observe  spiders  and  snails.  Time  was  pro- 
gressing slowly  and  miserably,  and  bringing  nothing 
but  anxiety  as  to  the  means  to  support  this  sad 
existence.  Metchnikoff  had  hoped  to  receive  the 
Baer  prize  for  a  zoological  work,  but  did  not  obtain 
it :  it  was  refused  on  the  pretext  that  his  memoir 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  79 

had  been  presented  in  manuscript  instead  of  being 
printed.  In  reality,  the  German  party  had  wished 
to  give  it  to  a  fellow-German. 

A  friend  -of  his,  who  sent  him  the  bad  news,  offered 
to  lend  him  300  roubles,  and  Metchnikoff  accepted  ; 
he  could  now  think  of  nothing  but  holding  out  till 
the  end. 

One  morning  the  patient's  condition  suddenly 
became  much  worse.  The  doctor  was  sent  for  in  a 
hurry  and  declared  that  it  was  now  a  question  of  a 
few  hours.  .  .  .  When  Metchnikoff  went  back  to  his 
wife  he  found  her  with  eyes  wide  open  and  so  full  of 
mortal  anguish  and  utter  despair  that  he  could  bear 
it  no  longer  and  went  out  hastily,  not  to  show  her 
his  dismay. 

This  was  his  last  impression ;  he  never  saw  her  again. 

Only  half  conscious,  he  walked  up  and  down  the 
drawing-room,  opening  and  closing  books  without 
seeing  them,  his  mind  full  of  disconnected  pictures ; 
he  wondered  to  himself  how  his  family  would  hear 
the  news.  Time  passed  without  his  realising  it. 
Then  his  sister-in-law  came  to  tell  him  that  all  was 
over.  This  was  on  the  20th  April  1873. 

Metchnikoff's  feelings  were  complex :  a  mixture 
of  crushing  despair  and  of  relief  at  the  thought  that 
the  terrible  agony  was  at  last  ended.  .  .  .  During 
the  whole  of  the  sad  first  night  he  sat  with  his  sister- 
in-law  in  a  distant  room,  talking  of  those  things 
which  are  only  mentioned  in  moments  such  as  these. 
When  Dr.  Goldschmidt  came  in  the  morning  to  offer 
Metchnikoff  his  sympathy  and  help  he  found  him 
apparently  almost  calm.  Metchnikoff  asked  him  to 
make  a  post-mortem  examination  of  the  deceased 
and  to  look  after  her  sister.  A  Scottish  minister 


80  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

came  to  bring  religious  comfort  and  to  exhort  him 
to  look  there  for  consolation.  Metchnikoff  thanked 
him,  but  firmly  assured  him  that  it  was  not  possible 
to  him. 

The  funeral  took  place  two  days  later  ;  he  did  not 
attend  it  and  did  not  see  the  corpse.  Immediately 
after  the  funeral  he  left  Madeira  with  his  sister-in-law. 
Being  no  longer  anxious  to  economise,  he  took  with 
him  a  sick  young  Russian  who  wished  to  see  his  mother 
again  and  could  not  afford  the  journey. 

After  the  catastrophe,  MetchnikofE  felt  incapable 
of  thinking  of  the  future,  his  life  seemed  cut  off  at  one 
blow  ;  he  destroyed  his  papers  and  reserved  a  phial 
of  morphia,  without  any  settled  intention.  They 
journeyed  back  through  Spain  ;  it  was  during  the 
Carlist  insurrection,  and  several  episodes  on  the  way 
distracted  their  attention.  Elie  and  his  sister-in- 
law  reached  Geneva,  where  they  found  Leo  Metch- 
nikoff  and  several  relations,  among  whom  he  seems 
to  have  recovered  himself.  He  even  related  some  of 
their  travelling  experiences,  meetings  with  Carlists, 
frontier  incidents,  etc.,  with  some  spirit.  But  his 
apparent  calm  concealed  black  despair. 

He  said  to  himself :  "  Why  live  ?  My  private 
life  is  ended  ;  my  eyes  are  going ;  when  I  am  blind 
I  can  no  longer  work,  then  why  live  ?  "  Seeing  no 
issue  to  his  situation,  he  absorbed  the  morphia.  He 
did  not  know  that  too  strong  a  dose,  by  provoking 
vomiting,  eliminates  the  poison.  Such  was  the  case 
with  him.  He  fell  into  a  sort  of  torpor,  of  extra- 
ordinary comfort  and  absolute  rest ;  in  spite  of  this 
comatose  state  he  remained  conscious  and  felt  no 
fear  of  death.  When  he  became  himself  again,  it 
was  with  a  feeling  of  dismay.  He  said  to  himself  that 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  81 

only  a  grave  illness  could  save  him,  either  by  ending 
in  death  or  by  awaking  the  vital  instinct  in  him. 
In  order  to  attain  his  object,  he  took  a  very  hot  bath 
and  then  exposed  himself  to  cold.  As  he  was  coming 
back  by  the  Rhone  bridge,  he  suddenly  saw  a  cloud 
of  winged  insects  flying  around  the  flame  of  a  lantern. 
They  were  Phryganidse,  but  in  the  distance  he  took 
them  for  Ephemeridse,  and  the  sight  of  them  sug- 
gested the  following  reflection :  "  How  can  the  theory 
of  natural  selection  be  applied  to  these  insects  ?  They 
do  not  feed  and  only  live  a  few  hours  ;  they  are  there- 
fore not  subject  to  the  struggle  for  existence,  they  do 
not  have  time  to  adapt  themselves  to  surrounding 
conditions." 

His  thoughts  turned  towards  Science  ;    he  was 
saved  ;  the  link  with  life  was  re-established. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

Anthropological  expedition  to  the  Kalmuk  steppes — Affection  of  the 
eyes— Second  expedition  to  the  steppes — The  eggs  of  the  Geophilus. 

AFTER  the  misfortune  which  had  befallen  him 
Metchnikoff  placed  his  only  hope  in  work,  and  the 
condition  of  his  eyes  was  therefore  for  him  a  source 
of  great  preoccupation.  He  applied  to  the  Peters- 
burg Geographical  Society  for  an  anthropological 
mission  in  order  to  undertake  researches  less  trying 
to  his  eyesight  than  microscopical  work. 

As  he  went  deeper  into  anthropology,  he  was  struck 
by  the  fact  that  this  science  lacked  a  leading  thread 
and  was  guided  by  no  general  idea  but  reduced  to 
mere  measurements,  very  precise  and  detailed,  it  is 
true.  Metchnikoff  wondered  whether  it  would  not 
be  advisable  to  apply  to  anthropology  the  methods 
used  in  embryology  and  to  establish  an  analogy 
between  the  diverse  human  races  and  the  different 
ages  of  the  individual.  In  order  to  solve  this  problem 
he  had  thought  at  first  of  visiting  the  Samoyedes 
as  being  the  most  primitive  of  the  aboriginal  peoples 
of  Russia.  But  the  project  was  not  realisable  and  he 
determined  to  visit,  at  his  own  expense,  the  Kalmuks 
of  the  Astrakhan  steppes,  also  a  primitive  Mongol  race. 

Before  his  departure  he  went  to  see  his  family 
and  that  of  his  late  wife.  Long  afterwards  his  sister- 
in-law,  Mile.  Fedorovitch,  wrote  me  the  following 
account  of  that  interview  : 

82 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  83 

He  was  still  suffering  from  an  inflammation  of  the  eyes. 
This  man,  whom  I  cannot  picture  to  myself  without  a  micro- 
scope or  a  book,  was,  at  that  sad  period  of  his  life,  reduced 
to  complete  inactivity.  We  had  always  been  struck  with 
his  power  of  becoming  absorbed  in  scientific  reading,  even 
during  meals ;  it  inconvenienced  no  one,  for  he  heard  at 
the  same  time  the  conversation  that  was  going  on  and  even 
took  part  in  it  from  time  to  time.  Now,  the  day  after  his 
arrival,  I  came  to  call  him  to  tea  and  found  him  seated  in  his 
darkened  room  with  scissors  in  his  hands  and  the  floor  around 
him  littered  with  small  pieces  of  paper  .  .  .  such  was  the 
occupation  to  which  he  was  reduced. 

He  told  me  that,  if  I  liked,  he  would  come  to  live  in  Moscow 
and  devote  his  life  and  his  work  to  OUT  family.  I  refused 
and  told  him  why  ;  my  refusal  grieved  him,  but  I  was  right. 
Besides  a  feeling  of  generosity,  his  offer  was  actuated  by  a 
desire  for  an  immediate  object  in  life.  Soon  after  that,  he 
started  for  the  Kalmuk  steppes  in  order  to  undertake  anthro- 
pological researches.  I  was  often  haunted  by  the  thought  of 
his  sad  figure  in  the  midst  of  the  steppes. 

The  journey  was  difficult  and  fatiguing.  Metch- 
nikoff  did  not  know  the  Kalmuk  language  and  had  to 
depend  on  interpreters.  From  the  very  first  he  was 
painfully  impressed  by  the  brutality  of  the  Russian 
officials  towards  the  natives.  At  every  halt  the 
Kalmuks  declared  that  they  had  no  horses  ;  the 
Cossack  who  convoyed  Metchnikoff  would  then  begin 
to  swear  and  to  play  with  his  "  nagaika  "  or  leather- 
thonged  whip,  and  the  required  horses  appeared  as 
by  magic.  After  a  while  MetchnikofE  became  used 
to  such  scenes  and  looked  upon  them  as  a  custom  of 
the  country.  He  found  it  more  difficult  to  put  up 
with  the  indescribable  dirt,  the  smell  of  mutton  fat 
which  impregnated  the  food,  and  the  continual  barking 
of  dogs  during  the  night,  details  which  destroyed  the 
charm  and  poetry  of  primitive  life.  In  spite  of  these 


84  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

unfavourable  conditions,  MetchnikofE  worked  inde- 
f atigably.  The  physical  measurements  of  the  Kalmuks 
led  him  to  conclude  that  the  development  of  the 
Mongol  race  was  arrested  in  comparison  with  that  of 
the  Caucasian  race  ;  he  found  that  all  the  relative 
proportions  of  the  diverse  parts  of  the  Kalmuk  skeleton 
corresponded  with  that  of  youth  in  the  Caucasian 
race  :  a  large  head,  a  long  torso,  short  legs,  absolutely 
the  relative  dimensions  of  our  children.  This  con- 
clusion was  further  confirmed  by  the  structure  of  the 
eyelid  in  the  Kalmuks,  of  which  the  fold  (epicanthus) 
in  the  adult  corresponds  with  that  of  the  fold  of  the 
eyelid  in  our  children. 

These  interesting  results  somewhat  raised  Metch- 
nikoff's  moral,  the  more  so  that  his  eyesight  began 
to  improve  ;  he  returned  to  Odessa  but  found  that 
he  was  still  unable  to  use  a  microscope.  He  therefore 
decided  to  go  back  to  the  steppes  in  order  to  proceed 
with  his  researches,  and,  this  time,  began  his  journey 
by  the  Stavropol  province.  The  steppes  there  are 
very  fine,  with  tall,  luxuriant  grasses  and  a  profusion 
of  flowers  filling  the  pure  atmosphere  with  perfume  ; 
the  infinite  space  and  absolute  calm  offer  a  peculiar 
and  powerful  charm.  But  the  population  is  depressed 
and  apathetic,  as  is  the  case  with  that  of  the  Astrakhan 
steppes.  The  reason  must  be  that  the  Kalmuks  con- 
sume milk  which  has  undergone  alcoholic  fermen- 
tation, and  that  provokes  a  slight  but  chronic  intoxi- 
cation. Yet  a  few  among  them  are  extremely 
intelligent  and  of  fairly  high  culture.  Thus,  in  the 
course  of  his  ethnographical  researches  Metchnikoff 
came  across  a  priest  (baksha)  who  imparted  to  him 
such  instructive  facts  on  the  principles  of  the  Buddhist 
religion  and  on  the  organisation  of  its  clergy  that  he 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  85 

even  planned  to  go  with  him  to  Thibet,  where  no 
stranger  can  penetrate  without  the  help  of  an  adept. 
This  plan,  however,  was  never  executed. 

After  he  had  collected  numerous  anthropological 
data,  Metchnikoff  went  again  to  the  Astrakhan  steppes 
in  order  to  verify  and  to  complete  his  observations 
of  the  preceding  year.  Whilst  traversing  some  oases 
where  the  Russians  were  making  experiments  in 
artificial  forestry,  he  had  the  pleasant  surprise  of 
finding  some  Myriapoda  (Geophilus)  bearing  a  number 
of  eggs.  The  history  of  the  development  of  those 
creatures  was  still  unknown — a  notable  lacuna  in 
embryology.  Delighted  at  the  idea  of  filling  it, 
Metchnikoff  did  not  hesitate  to  undertake  a  long  and 
difficult  extra  journey  and  repaired  to  Astrakhan, 
taking  with  him  his  precious  material,  in  order  to 
fetch  the  necessary  apparatus  for  his  researches. 
But  during  the  long  journey  several  eggs  perished  and 
he  had  to  return  to  the  oasis  with  a  borrowed  micro- 
scope to  study  other  eggs  on  the  spot.  In  spite  of 
very  difficult  conditions  and  of  the  persistent  weak- 
ness of  his  eyesight,  he  succeeded  in  filling  the  lacuna 
in  the  embryology  of  the  Geophilus. 

He  had  at  the  same  time  collected  very  interesting 
anthropological  data.  His  hypothesis  as  to  the  neces- 
sity of  applying  to  anthropology  the  comparative 
methods  of  embryology  was  fully  justified,  for,  thanks 
to  that  process,  he  was  able  to  establish  a  definite 
correlation  between  the  Mongol  race  and  the  adoles- 
cence of  the  Caucasian  race.  He  presented  a  report 
on  the  subject  to  the  Anthropological  Society  of 
Moscow,  but,  his  attention  being  afterwards  turned  in 
other  directions,  he  never  came  back  to  this  subject. 


CHAPTER  XV 

"  As  to  thee,  Hector,  thou  art  to 
me  as  a  father  and  a  revered  mother 
and  a  brother,  and  thou  art  my 
husband." — The  Iliad. 

Studies  on  childhood — The  family  in  the  upper  flat — Lessons  in  zoology 
— Second  marriage — Private  life — Visit  and  death  of  Lvovna 
Nevahovna — Conjugal  affection. 

METCHNIKOFF'S  anthropological  researches  led  him 
to  the  study  of  childhood,  which  in  its  turn  suggested 
reflections  on  questions  of  Pedagogy.  His  eyesight 
was  still  weak  and  his  hunger  for  activity  very  great ; 
in  order  to  satisfy  it,  he  gave  lessons  in  a  Lycee  and 
public  lectures  in  the  Odessa  University.  Though 
time  was  passing,  Metchnikoff  could  not  get  used  to 
his  solitude  ;  he  spent  his  active  kindness  on  his 
friends  and  all  around  him,  whilst  living  like  an 
ascetic  and  giving  away  all  that  he  could  spare.  But 
nothing  could  quench  his  thirst  for  a  family  life  and 
affectionate  intimacy. 

My  family  at  that  time  lived  in  the  same  house 
as  he  did,  on  the  floor  above  him ;  we  were  eight 
children,  our  ages  ranging  from  one  to  sixteen  years. 
We  were  noisy  neighbours  and  we  incommoded  Metch- 
nikoff,  who  was  awakened  every  morning  by  the 
noise  in  our  kitchen,  where  meat  was  being  minced 
for  the  children.  One  fine  day  he  could  stand  it  no 
longer  and  went  upstairs  to  ask  if  this  nuisance  could 
not  be  stopped ;  my  father  promised  that  he  would 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  87 

see  that  it  ceased.  We  were  all  seated  round  the  tea- 
table  when  he  came  in,  and,  seeing  a  stranger,  my 
sister  and  I  hurriedly  collected  our  lesson  books,  and 
hastened  to  leave  the  room.  We  did  not  even  have 
time  to  distinguish  Metchnikoff's  features,  but  were 
struck  by  his  paleness.  Shortly  after  that  incident 
we  met  him  at  the  house  of  a  mutual  friend.  He  had 
already  seen  us  from  his  window  as  we  went  off  to 
the  Lycee,  and  it  used  to  amuse  him  to  see  us  bravely 
stepping  over  a  large  pool  of  water  which  was  per- 
manent in  the  street. 

One  of  his  pupils  was  a  professor  in  our  Lycee, 
and  Elie  had  the  opportunity  of  informing  himself 
concerning  our  studies.  Having  heard  that  I  was 
interested  in  natural  science,  it  occurred  to  him  to 
offer  to  give  me  lessons  in  zoology.  I  was  delighted. 
He  asked  and  obtained  permission  from  my  parents, 
and  we  eagerly  set  to  work.  Elie,  being  strongly 
attracted  by  me,  returned  to  his  former  idea  of 
training  a  girl  according  to  his  own  ideas  and  after- 
wards making  her  his  wife.  He  might  have  realised 
his  programme  of  completing  my  education  first  and 
marrying  me  afterwards  if  he  had  not  been  prevented 
by  the  complete  lack  of  accord  between  his  ideas  and 
those  of  my  father.  It  was  the  eternal  conflict  of 
two  generations,  "fathers  and  children."  My  father 
was  an  excellent  man,  of  great  nobility  of  character, 
but  he  was  a  type  of  the  old  Russian  patrician  school 
and  belonged  to  a  different  epoch,  with  different 
opinions  and  customs.  This  caused  inevitable  and 
frequent  disagreements,  and  Elie  decided  to  ask  for 
my  hand  without  further  delay. 

My  mother  was  much  younger  than  my  father, 
and  her  sympathies  were  all  with  the  young  genera- 


88  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

tion.  She  was  an  idealist,  gentle,  intelligent  and 
artistic,  and,  in  her  youth,  had  painted  and  played  the 
violoncello,  but  a  very  early  marriage  and  numerous 
children  had  forced  her  to  give  up  the  practice  of  art, 
to  her  lifelong  regret.  Great  sympathy  arose  between 
her  and  Elie  ;  she  supported  him  in  everything  and 
became  for  him  a  tenderly  attached  friend.  He 
explained  to  her  his  theories  on  marriage,  and  then 
confided  to  her  his  feelings  towards  me.  My  extreme 
youth  troubled  her  very  much,  but  Elie  endeavoured 
to  reassure  her,  saying  that  he  fully  understood  the 
rashness  of  his  projects,  but  that  he  was  ready  to 
suffer  all  the  consequences  ;  in  fact,  he  declared,  if 
he  did  not  succeed  in  making  me  happy,  he  would 
have  the  strength  to  help  me  to  create  another  exist- 
ence for  myself.  I  had  not  suspected  my  Professor's 
feelings  towards  me,  and  was  deeply  moved  when  I 
was  told  of  them  ;  it  seemed  to  me  impossible  to 
understand  that  this  superior,  this  learned  man  could 
wish  to  marry  a  little  girl  like  myself  !  I  thought 
with  terror  that  he  must  be  mistaken  about  me  ;  I 
felt  as  if  I  were  going  up  for  an  examination  without 
any  previous  study.  However,  I  had  a  great  affec- 
tion and  admiration  for  Elie  ;  I  was  attracted  by  his 
whole  personality,  which  produced  a  strong  impression 
upon  others  as  well  as  upon  myself.  This  is  how 
Setchenoff  describes  him,  in  his  own  autobiography  : 

Elie  Metchnikoff  was  the  soul  of  our  circle.  Of  all  the 
young  men  I  have  known  in  my  life,  young  Metchnikoff  was 
the  most  attractive  with  his  lively  intelligence,  inexhaustible 
wit  and  abundant  knowledge  of  all  things.  He  was,  in  Science, 
as  serious  and  as  productive  (he  had  already  done  much  in 
zoology  and  acquired  a  great  name  in  that  branch)  as  he  was 
full  of  life  and  varied  interest  in  a  circle  of  friends. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  89 

Moreover,  my  young  imagination  was  impressed 
by  his  sad  history  and  by  his  interesting  appearance, 
at  that  time  not  unlike  a  figure  of  Christ ;  his  pale 
face  was  illumined  by  the  light  in  his  kindly  eyes,  which 
at  times  looked  absolutely  inspired.  My  whole  heart 
went  out  to  him,  but  I  was  not  yet  ripe  for  matrimony 
and  was  somewhat  thrown  off  my  balance  by  the 
unexpectedness  of  the  event.  Fearing  that  I  was  not 
up  to  his  level,  I  used  to  try  beforehand  to  find 
worthy  subjects  of  conversation  in  order  that  he  should 
not  feel  bored  in  my  society,  but  everything  I  thought 
of  seemed  to  me  so  clumsy  and  stupid  that  I  rejected 
one  subject  after  another  until  he  came  and  found  me 
at  a  loss.  He  could  not  understand  how  deeply  I 
was  troubled,  and  cannot  have  been  satisfied  with  my 
attitude,  which  really  was  that  of  a  zealous  pupil. 

Our  marriage  took  place  in  February  1875  ;  it 
was  a  very  cold  winter  and  the  ground  was  covered 
with  a  thick  coating  of  glistening  snow.  A  few  hours 
before  the  ceremony  my  brothers  came  with  a  little 
hand  sledge  to  fetch  me  for  a  last  ride.  "  Come  quick," 
they  said,  "  this  evening  you  will  be  a  grown-up  lady, 
and  you  can't  play  with  us  any  more  !  "  I  agreed, 
and  we  rushed  out  to  the  snowy  carpet  which  covered 
the  great  yard  of  our  house.  In  the  midst  of  our 
mad  race  my  mother  appeared  at  the  window ;  she 
had  been  looking  for  me  everywhere  and  was  much 
disturbed.  "  My  dear  child  !  what  are  you  thinking 
of  ?  It  is  late,  you  have  hardly  time  to  dress  and 
to  do  your  hair  !  "  "  One  more  turn,  mother  !  It  is 
the  last  time,  think  of  it !  "  Other  childish  emotions 
awaited  me  ;  my  wedding-dress  was  the  first  long 
dress  I  had  ever  worn,  and  I  feared  to  stumble  as  I 
walked.  Then,  too,  I  was  frightened  at  the  idea  of 


90  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

entering  the  church  under  the  eyes  of  all  the  guests. 
My  little  brother  tried  to  reassure  me  by  offering  to 
hold  my  hand,  and  my  mother  made  me  drink  some 
chocolate  to  give  me  courage. 

Elie  was  awaiting  us  at  the  entrance  ;  my  shyness 
increased  when  I  heard  people  whispering  around  us, 
"  Why,  she  is  a  mere  child  !  "  The  ceremony  took 
place  in  the  evening,  after  which  Elie  wrapped  me 
carefully  in  a  long  warm  cloak  and  we  set  off,  the 
sledge  gliding  like  the  wind,  towards  our  new  home. 
In  spite  of  the  day's  emotions,  I  rose  very  early  the 
next  morning  in  order  to  work  at  my  zoology  exercises 
and  to  give  my  husband  a  pleasant  surprise.  He  was 
now  free  to  superintend  my  education,  a  very  difficult 
and  delicate  task  when  having  to  do  with  a  mind  as 
unprepared  for  life  as  mine  was. 

The  scientific  methods  which  Metchnikoff  applied 
to  everything  might  have  constituted  a  grave  error 
at  this  delicate  psychological  moment ;  yet,  in  many 
ways,  he  showed  himself  a  strangely  clear-sighted 
educator.  He  made  it  a  principle  to  give  me  entire 
liberty  whilst  directing  me  through  the  logic  of  his 
arguments.  It  is  with  deep  gratitude  that  I  realise 
how  he,  so  superior  to  me,  took  care  not  to  stifle  my 
fragile  individuality  but  to  respect  it  and  to  encourage 
it  to  develop.  Like  all  Russian  young  people  of  the 
time,  I  was  very  enthusiastic  concerning  political  and 
social  questions  that  I  was  not  mature  enough  to 
understand,  and  my  father  forbade  us  to  frequent 
political  circles  with  which  he  had  no  sympathy,  fear- 
ing that  we  might  be  influenced  by  them.  Elie,  on 
the  contrary,  left  me  full  liberty,  though  he  himself 
disapproved  of  my  tendencies.  He  considered  that 
political  and  social  questions  belonged  to  the  realm  of 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  91 

practical  experience,  in  which  young  people  were 
lacking,  as  also  in  practical  preparation.  He  never 
prevented  me  from  making  myself  acquainted  with 
the  social  movement,  but  submitted  it  to  close  analysis 
and  criticism ;  it  is  owing  to  this  very  efficacious 
method  that  I  did  not  become  one  of  the  numerous 
political  victims  of  that  time. 

Elie  took  a  lively  and  warm  interest  in  everything 
which  concerned  me.  Not  having  had  time  to  pass 
my  final  examinations  from  the  Lycee  before  my  mar- 
riage, I  was  now  obliged  to  go  up  before  a  special 
board  for  the  whole  curriculum.  He  helped  me  to 
prepare  this,  even  the  catechism,  with  the  utmost 
keenness  and  gaiety,  enlivening  the  driest  subjects 
by  means  of  interesting  and  instructive  reading.  I 
was  glad  to  continue  my  biological  studies  under  his 
direction  after  I  had  passed  my  examinations.  Not 
only  did  he  give  a  general  interest,  a  leading  thread, 
to  every  particular  subject,  but  he  also  knew  how  to 
develop  independent  work.  For  instance,  he  made 
me  compare  representative  examples  of  divers  groups 
by  practical  study  in  order  to  let  me  deduce  for 
myself  their  characteristics  and  their  generic  con- 
nections. 

And  it  was  not  my  education  only  which  interested 
him ;  he  associated  me  with  every  detail  of  his  life 
and  initiated  me  into  his  thoughts  and  his  work  ; 
we  read  together  a  great  deal,  he  had  an  excellent 
delivery  and  liked  reading  aloud. 

He  thoroughly  enjoyed  giving  me  pleasure ;  we 
often  went  to  concerts  and  theatres,  and  beautiful 
music  or  dramatic  scenes  moved  him  even  to  tears. 
Musical  themes  haunted  him,  and  he  would  whistle 
them  softly  to  himself  even  at  his  work.  Without 


92  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

caring  for  luxury,  he  was  glad  to  contribute  to  the 
simple  embellishment  of  our  home  because  he  knew 
I  appreciated  it.  When  we  travelled,  always  with 
scientific  research  as  an  object,  he  never  failed  to 
point  out  every  interesting  feature  that  we  happened 
to  pass.  He  had  a  peculiar  talent  for  making  a 
journey  instructive  as  well  as  attractive  ;  his  eager- 
ness, infectious  gaiety,  inquisitive  mind,  and  remark- 
able organising  faculty  made  of  him  an  incomparable 
guide  and  companion. 

We  worked  together  for  many  years  ;  it  was  both 
delightful  and  profitable  to  work  with  him,  for  he 
opened  out  his  ideas  unreservedly  and  made  one 
share  his  enthusiasm  and  his  interest  in  investigations  ; 
he  could  create  an  atmosphere  of  intimate  union  in 
the  search  for  truth  which  allowed  the  humblest 
worker  to  feel  himself  a  collaborator  in  an  exalted 
task. 

Though  I  always  took  a  strong  interest  in  scientific 
questions,  Art  was  the  real  passion  of  my  life.  But, 
imbued  as  I  was  with  the  narrow,  utilitarian  views 
which  surrounded  my  youth,  I  had  looked  upon  Art 
as  a  luxury  which  should  not  be  indulged  in  at  a  time 
when  the  poorer  classes  could  not  read  and  write. 
When  at  last  I  became  emancipated  from  this  fallacy, 
my  husband  did  his  best  to  encourage  my  artistic 
development  though  he  himself  did  not  appreciate 
plastic  art.  Form  and  colour  in  themselves  or  in 
harmony  did  not  appeal  to  him  ;  he  took  much  more 
interest  in  a  subject  than  in  the  way  it  was  treated  ; 
he  liked  psychological  or  realistic  work,  landscapes, 
"  genre  "  pictures,  but  classical,  Kenaissance,  or  Im- 
pressionist works  bored  him.  In  spite  of  the  diver- 
gence of  our  tastes  in  that  connection,  he  never  ceased 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  93 

to  encourage  me  or  to  take  an  active  interest  in  my 
work  ;  often  and  often  he  accompanied  me  to  picture 
galleries,  making  sincere  and  somewhat  pathetic  efforts 
to  appreciate  the  beauty  of  great  masterpieces. 

Next  to  music  he  enjoyed  Nature  most,  perhaps 
because  it  offered  him  an  inexhaustible  source  of 
scientific  observation.  His  wearied  nerves  caused  him 
to  seek  for  soothing  impressions,  and  calm,  quiet 
ponds  were  what  he  preferred,  with  their  reeds  and 
aquatic  plants,  among  which  he  loved  to  discover  tiny 
beings,  hidden  under  the  leaves  and  below  the  surface 
of  the  water. 

Teaching  and  public  work  took  up  nearly  the  whole 
of  his  time  ;  his  leisure  was  devoted  to  home  life 
and  to  an  intimate  circle  of  friends  with  whom  he 
was  bound  by  a  common  scientific  fervour  and  by  a 
University  life.  He  kept  up  those  friendships  even 
after  life  had  scattered  them.  His  active  kindness 
made  him  a  centre  of  attraction  to  his  relations  and 
we  were  always  very  much  surrounded.  After  his 
father  died,  in  1878,  his  mother  and  two  of  her  grand- 
children came  to  live  with  us.  She  was  at  that  time 
sixty-four  years  of  age  and  had  the  appearance  of  an 
old  lady  ;  she  did  not  follow  the  fashion  but  wore  her 
white  hair  simply  parted  and  framing  her  face  ;  alone 
her  fine  dark  eyes  had  preserved  their  youthful 
sparkle  and  bore  witness  to  her  former  beauty.  She 
had  a  bright  and  cheerful  disposition  and  a  charming 
kindliness  to  every  one  ;  her  desire  for  activity  was 
unfortunately  thwarted  by  the  state  of  her  health. 

Elie  showed  his  mother  a  tender  solicitude  which 
manifested  itself  in  the  smallest  details  ;  for  instance, 
he  who  detested  cards  would  play  Patience  with  her  ; 
or  he  would  drive  her  round  the  markets,  which 


94  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

interested  her  like  the  good  housekeeper  she  was. 
When  he  came  in  from  the  laboratory  he  never  failed 
to  go  to  her  to  ask  her  for  details  of  her  health  ;  he 
talked  to  her  playfully  and  affectionately,  making 
her  laugh,  telling  her  the  incidents  of  the  day.  She 
continued  to  be  interested  in  everything,  especially 
that  which  concerned  her  dear  Elie,  the  "  consolation 
of  her  life,"  as  she  called  him. 

In  spite  of  his  affection  for  his  mother,  he  bore 
her  almost  sudden  death  very  stoically,  knowing  as 
he  did  that  the  grave  heart  disease  from  which  she 
suffered  was  bound  to  cause  her  increasing  pain. 

My  family  became  his,  and  the  relations  between 
him  and  my  father  became  such  that  the  latter, 
feeling  ill  and  nearing  his  end,  made  him  our  guardian. 
Until  the  last  my  mother  preserved  for  my  husband 
a  tender  friendship  which  he  fully  returned.  For 
years  he  bore  the  burden  and  responsibilities  of  the 
family.  With  my  young  brothers  and  sisters  he  kept 
up  a  tone  of  merry  affection ;  always  indulgent  with 
them,  he  was  anxious  to  neglect  nothing  that  could 
be  useful.  Though  ever  led  by  the  desire  to  procure 
happiness  around  him,  it  sometimes  happened  that 
he  made  a  mistake  in  his  appreciation  and  failed  to 
reach  his  goal.  The  human  soul  is  a  riddle,  life  is 
complicated,  and  we  ought  not  always  to  judge  by 
results  but  by  motives.  ...  As  far  as  I  am  personally 
concerned,  his  affection,  kindness,  and  solicitude  have 
always  been  unbounded.  If  during  early  years  a  few 
misunderstandings  arose  between  us,  they  were  due 
to  my  youthful  obstinacy  or  to  his  nervous  sensitive- 
ness. We  had  our  trials,  but  our  friendship  and  deep 
affection  emerged  from  them  stronger  and  purer  than 
ever.  At  a  certain  time,  Elie,  believing  that  happiness 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  95 

called  me  elsewhere,  offered  me  my  liberty,  urging 
that  I  had  a  moral  right  to  it.  The  nobility  of  his 
attitude  was  the  best  safeguard.  ...  As  years  went 
on,  our  lives  became  more  and  more  united ;  we  lived 
in  deep  communion  of  souls,  for  we  had  reached  that 
stage  of  mutual  comprehension  when  darkness  flees 
and  all  is  light. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

Metchnikoff  at  the  age  of  thirty — Lecturing  in  Odessa  University,  from 
1873  to  1882 — Internal  difficulties — Assassination  of  the  Tsar, 
Alexander  II. — Further  troubles  in  the  University — Resignation 
— Bad  health  :  cardiac  symptoms — Relapsing  fever — Choroiditis 
— Studies  on  Ephemeridse — Further  studies  on  intracellular 
digestion — The  Parenchymella — Holidays  in  the  country — Experi- 
ments on  agricultural  pests. 

ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  was  now  thirty  years  old,  and  his 
personality  was  fully  characterised  though  it  had  not 
yet  reached  the  culminating  point  of  its  development. 

His  dominating  point  was  his  passionate  vocation  ; 
his  worship  of  Science  and  of  Reason  made  of  him 
an  inspired  apostle.  He  had  the  faults  and  qualities 
of  a  rich  and  powerful  nature.  Vibrating  through  all 
the  fibres  of  his  being,  he  shed  life  and  light  around 
him.  His  temper  was  violent  and  passionate  ;  he 
could  bear  no  attack  on  the  ideas  which  were  dear 
to  him,  and  became  combative  as  soon  as  he  thought 
them  threatened.  His  was  a  wrestler's  temperament ; 
obstacles  exasperated  his  energy  and  he  went  straight 
for  them,  pursuing  his  object  with  an  invincible 
tenacity ;  he  never  gave  up  a  problem,  however 
difficult,  and  never  hesitated  to  face  any  sacrifice  or 
any  privation  if  he  thought  them  necessary. 

A  strange  contradiction  with  this  iron  will  was 
offered  by  occasional  disconcerting  impulses,  like  that 
which  caused  the  failure  of  his  first  journey  abroad, 
or  by  sudden  attacks  of  fury  for  insignificant  reasons 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  97 

such  as  an  unexpected  noise  in  the  street,  a  cat  mewing 
or  a  dog  barking,  or  angry  impatience  when  he  could 
not  solve  a  frivolous  puzzle,  etc.  This  impulsive 
disposition  gradually  calmed  down  as  he  grew  older, 
and  ultimately  very  nearly  disappeared. 

In  his  personal  relations  also  he  was  apt  to  lose 
his  temper,  but  a  reaction  very  soon  followed  the 
outburst,  and  his  efforts  to  be  forgiven  when  he  felt 
guilty  were  very  touching.  On  the  other  hand,  he 
did  not  easily  forget  an  offence,  though  no  desire  for 
revenge  ever  soiled  his  soul,  and  his  gratitude  for 
kindness  was  absolutely  indestructible. 

He  harboured  pessimistic  theories  to  that  extent 
that  he  looked  upon  the  procreation  of  other  lives  as 
a  crime  on  the  part  of  a  conscious  being  ;  his  physical 
and  moral  sensitiveness  was  intense.  And  yet  he 
had  inherited  from  his  mother  a  natural  gaiety  and 
delightful  elasticity  which  always  ended  by  gaining 
the  upper  hand.  He  was  fond  of  joking  ;  his  wit  was 
occasionally  somewhat  cutting,  but  that  was  entirely 
due  to  the  appropriateness  of  his  remarks  ;  he  never 
hurt  people's  feelings  intentionally.  He  sometimes 
gave  offence  by  a  professional  habit  of  using  personal 
and  concrete  instances  by  way  of  arguments,  but  he 
applied  the  process  to  himself  as  well ;  it  was  the 
objective  method,  nothing  more,  and  those  who  knew 
him  well  never  doubted  it. 

His  benevolence  was  most  active  and  never  insipid, 
though  marked  by  an  almost  feminine  sensibility. 
He  was  an  incomparable  companion  and  friend,  and 
had  the  gift  of  smoothing  difficulties  and  inspiring 
courage,  security,  and  confidence.  He  took  the 
greatest  interest  in  others  and  easily  came  down  to 
their  level,  always  finding  points  in  common,  "  an 

H 


98  LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

opportunity  for  the  study  of  human  documents,"  he 
said.  Thus  he  conversed  simply  and  sympathetically 
with  the  humble  as  with  the  great,  with  the  young  as 
with  the  old.  It  was  no  mere  intellectual  interest  that 
he  bore  them,  but  he  put  his  whole  heart  into  it,  which 
made  him  extremely  easy  to  approach.  And  yet  he 
never  departed  from  absolute  freedom  of  speech,  some- 
times mixed  with  harshness.  Truth  and  sincerity,  for 
him,  came  above  everything  ;  he  carried  the  courage 
of  his  opinions  to  the  highest  degree,  even  if  it  was 
likely  to  shock  his  hearers  or  to  do  him  harm.  He 
jealously  guarded  his  independence  and  nothing  could 
force  him  to  act  against  his  convictions.  Full  of 
enthusiasm,  always  interesting,  he  enlivened  all 
around  him.  His  ideas  and  his  activity  were  in 
constant  effervescence ;  no  serious  question  left  him 
indifferent ;  he  read  everything,  knew  about  almost 
everything,  and  willingly  informed  others  ;  his  vibrat- 
ing expansiveness  made  him  a  centre  of  attraction  in 
his  private  life  as  in  the  laboratory  or  in  any  other 
sphere  of  activity. 

From  1873  to  1882  his  energies  were  chiefly 
absorbed  by  teaching  and  by  the  inner  life  of  the 
University  of  Odessa,  into  which  he  threw  himself 
with  his  usual  enthusiasm.  His  lectures  were  full  of 
life,  always  bringing  out  general  ideas  to  throw  light 
upon  the  most  arid  facts  ;  he  made  use  of  these  as 
an  architect  utilises  coarse  materials  in  order  to  erect 
a  harmonious  edifice.  His  creative  power  endowed 
his  lectures  with  an  aesthetic  character  in  spite  of 
their  extreme  simplicity ;  not  that  he  concerned 
himself  much  about  form,  but  because  of  his  wealth 
of  ideas  and  the  logical  way  in  which  he  developed 
them,  starting  from  the  simple  and  reaching  the 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF  99 

complex  in  a  harmonious  synthesis.  His  own  enthusi- 
asm established  a  living  bond  between  him  and  his 
audience. 

He  was  on  excellent  terms  with  the  students, 
though  he  made  no  bid  for  popularity.  Not  only  did 
he  give  no  encouragement  to  the  prevailing  tendency 
of  the  young  men  towards  politics,  but  he  endeavoured 
on  the  contrary  to  bring  them  back  to  their  studies  ; 
he  tried  to  prove  to  them  that  social  problems  demand 
knowledge  and  a  serious  practical  preparation.  Other- 
wise, said  he,  social  life  would  be  as  medicine  was 
before  it  entered  into  the  path  of  science,  and  when 
any  middle-aged  woman,  any  bone-setter,  was  allowed 
to  practise  therapeutics.  At  the  same  time,  students 
found  in  him  willing  protection  in  the  persecutions 
directed  against  them,  and  earnest  help  in  their  work 
when  they  showed  the  least  interest  in  it ;  he  would 
eagerly  welcome  the  smallest  spark  of  the  "  sacred  fire." 

Owing  to  the  absolute  independence  of  his  ideas 
and  conduct  he  had  great  influence  on  young  men, 
and  this  caused  him  to  be  looked  upon  in  adminis- 
trative spheres  as  a  "  Red  " — almost  an  agitator.  In 
reality  he  was  struggling  against  the  inertia  and 
reactionary  forces  which  were  shackling  the  normal 
development  of  culture  and  science  in  Russia.  He 
called  himself  a  "  progressive  evolutionist,"  for  he 
considered  that  alone  a  deep  and  conscious  evolution 
could  give  stable  results  and  lead  to  real  progress. 
He  thought  that  Revolution,  and  especially  Terrorism, 
merely  provoked  a  reaction  which  might  be  long- 
lived,  and  that,  as  long  as  the  people  were  not  suffi- 
ciently educated,  a  revolution  might  easily  result  in 
the  transfer  of  despotism  from  one  party  to  another. 
Socialistic  doctrines  did  not  satisfy  him  ;  according 


100         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

to  him,  they  did  not  leave  sufficient  scope  to  personal 
initiative  and  to  the  development  of  individuality, 
two  factors  which  he  considered  as  essential  to  every 
progress. 

He  looked  upon  scientific  work  as  his  mission,  and 
avoided  politics  because  he  did  not  think  himself 
competent  to  deal  with  them.  But  scientific  activity 
being  closely  limited  by  the  state  of  the  University, 
which  was  badly  oppressed  at  that  time  by  re- 
actionary powers,  he  was  led  to  take  part  in  the 
defence  of  the  University's  right  to  autonomy.  He 
brought  all  his  energies  into  the  struggle,  though 
trying  to  keep  from  party  tactics  and  to  act  purely 
in  the  interests  of  science.  For  instance,  he  would 
vote  either  for  a  Eadical  or  a  Conservative  without 
sharing  the  opinions  of  either,  but  merely  guided  by 
their  scientific  value. 

At  the  beginning  of  his  scientific  career  at  Odessa 
he  led  a  very  active  campaign  in  favour  of  the  teaching 
of  Natural  Science.  He  urged  that,  in  order  to  teach 
properly,  Natural  History  professors  should  them- 
selves have  made  independent  researches  on  living 
fauna  and  flora,  and  tried  to  introduce  a  series  of 
measures  to  allow  biologists  special  holidays  and 
missions  to  desirable  places,  at  the  proper  seasons,  for 
research  purposes.  "  There  is  no  doubt,"  he  said, 
"  that  scientific  activity  would  be  much  increased  if 
the  proposed  measures  were  adopted.  Then,  before 
long,  our  young  scientists  would  not  need  to  go  to 
study  in  German  universities,  but  could  go  abroad 
already  prepared  to  undertake  independent  research." 
The  Commission  which  examined  his  report  demanded 
certain  modifications,  "  because  of  the  Imperial  in- 
junction to  be  very  strict  in  granting  travelling 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          101 

permits  to  professors. ' '  Metchnikoff  somewhat  altered 
the  text,  which,  after  being  adopted  by  the  University 
Council,  was  rejected  by  the  Ministry  and  remained 
without  effect.  Thus  was  every  independent  sugges- 
tion stifled,  even  when  it  had  but  a  purely  scientific 
object. 

Soon  the  situation  of  the  Odessa  University  became 
even  more  difficult.  Between  1875  and  1880  reaction 
increased  considerably,  and  the  inner  life  of  the 
University  became  very  unfavourable  to  any  scientific 
activity.  Already  before  that  it  was  teeming  with 
intrigues,  the  Professors  of  Ukrainian  origin  being 
hostile  to  the  "  Muscovites."  Yet  it  was  still  pos- 
sible to  remain  apart  from  these  local  intrigues,  until 
political  reaction,  filtering  into  the  University,  created 
in  it  the  deepest  divisions.  The  hostility  of  parties 
was  now  based  on  political  opinions,  either  "  Reac- 
tionary "  or  "  Liberal."  The  students  were  being 
more  and  more  carried  away  by  this  movement  and 
no  longer  took  any  interest  in  their  studies. 

All  these  conditions  made  normal  teaching  and 
scientific  work  impossible,  and  Metchnikoff,  seeing  that 
politics  from  above  and  from  below  now  swallowed 
up  everything,  tried  to  take  refuge  in  his  laboratory, 
but  in  vain ;  even  there  he  could  no  longer  find  the 
necessary  calm,  and  only  during  the  holidays  could 
he  really  work. 

Thus  passed  the  years  until  March  1,  1881,  when 
the  crime  which  ended  the  days  of  Alexander  II. 
was  followed  by  a  great  reactionary  movement.  The 
authorities,  seeing  conspiracies  and  plots  everywhere, 
persecuted  without  cause  all  the  elements  which  were 
ticketed  as  "  dangerous."  Though  the  University 
still  preserved  its  autonomy,  this  was  entirely  fictitious, 


102         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

for  the  Ministry  thwarted  every  desire  for  indepen- 
dence ;  the  nomination  of  professors  elected  by  the 
University  Council  was  only  ratified  by  the  Ministry 
if  they  were  reactionaries,  without  any  regard  for 
their  scientific  value.  Soon  the  Chairs  were  occupied 
by  ignorant  men  of  doubtful  morality. 

The  life  and  honour  of  the  University  became 
endangered,  and  Metchnikofi  found  himself  obliged 
to  take  part  in  the  struggle  ;  he  did  so  with  vehem- 
ence and  energy  ;  the  independence  of  the  University 
was  involved,  and,  as  long  as  he  could  hope  to  save  it, 
he  struggled.  At  the  meetings  of  the  Council  and 
of  the  Faculty  he  never  failed  to  give  vent  to  his 
critical  opinions  with  a  vehement  frankness  which 
earned  him  in  the  University  the  reputation  of  an 
"  enfant  terrible"  In  the  meanwhile  every  resolution 
passed  by  the  Council,  if  not  reactionary  in  character, 
was  systematically  quashed  by  the  Ministry,  which 
thus  paralysed  every  means  of  action,  and  Metchni- 
koff  found  himself  faced  with  the  alternative  of  sub- 
mitting or  handing  in  his  resignation.  He  decided  for 
the  latter:  his  convictions  were  involved,  and  more- 
over his  health  could  not  withstand  the  continual 
agitation  and  strain  on  his  nerves. 

As  we  could  not  afford  to  live  in  independence,  he 
applied  for  a  vacant  post  of  entomologist  in  the 
zemstvo 1  of  Poltava,  and  at  the  same  time  wrote  out 
his  resignation,  holding  it  in  readiness  for  an  oppor- 
tunity which  was  not  long  in  coming. 

The  Conservative  party  in  the  Faculty  arose  against 
a  Liberal  professor  who  had  accepted  a  very  clever 
thesis  in  which  the  Reactionaries  perceived  Socialist 
tendencies.  The  Dean  of  the  Faculty  proposed  that 

1  Rural  administration. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          103 

all  such  theses  should  be  refused,  and  the  Faculty 
approved.  This  was  the  signal  for  a  storm  in  the 
University,  the  Dean  was  hooted  by  the  students,  and 
many  of  them  were  threatened  with  being  expelled. 
The  Curator  desired  the  more  influential  professors, 
of  whom  Metchnikoff  was  one,  to  intervene  with  the 
students  in  order  to  bring  disorder  to  an  end,  and  the 
professors  consented,  on  condition  that  the  offending 
Dean  should  resign.  The  Curator  promised  that 
he  should  be  asked  to  do  so,  and  order  was  imme- 
diately restored ;  but  the  Dean  remained  and  many 
students  were  severely  and  unjustly  punished.  Metch- 
nikoff  thereupon  produced  his  resignation,  which  was 
promptly  accepted,  and  thus  his  University  career 
came  to  an  end. 

Besides  his  University  lectures,  he  gave  public 
lectures  on  Natural  History  which  were  attended  by 
a  number  of  female  students,  for  women  at  that  time 
were  only  admitted  to  the  Faculty  of  Medicine,  and 
these  lectures  were  extremely  useful  to  them.  Metch- 
nikoff,  though  he  did  not  believe  that  women  could 
accomplish  creative  work  in  science,  was  strongly 
in  favour  of  higher  education  for  women,  considering 
it  as  necessary  to  their  general  intellectual  develop- 
ment. Genius,  he  thought,  was  peculiar  to  the  male 
sex,  no  woman  having  created  anything  "  of  genius  " 
even  in  domains  which  had  always  been  accessible  to 
them,  such  as  music,  literature,  and  the  applied  arts. 
The  very  rare  exceptions,  to  his  mind,  only  proved 
the  rule ;  yet  he  did  not  draw  the  conclusion  that 
woman  was  in  any  sense  inferior  to  man.  He  merely 
held  that  her  gifts  are  different  from  those  of  men. 

Metchnikofl's  health  had  been  seriously  shaken 


104         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

by  the  emotions  and  annoyances  of  university  life. 
Already  in  1877,  after  political  intrigues  at  the 
University,  he  had  felt  the  first  symptoms  of  cardiac 
trouble,  which  were  the  beginning  of  a  long  period  of 
ill-health.  He  consulted  Bamberger,  a  great  Viennese 
physician,  who,  however,  found  nothing  serious,  and 
merely  forbade  him  the  use  of  wine  and  tobacco, 
to  neither  of  which  was  he  addicted. 

His  health  suffered  further  through  the  violent 
anxiety  which  he  went  through  in  1880  whilst  I  lay 
dangerously  ill  with  typhoid  fever,  contracted  in 
Naples.  Though  worn  out  with  devoted  nursing,  he 
tried  to  make  up  the  time  lost  to  research  and  over- 
worked himself,  with  the  result  that  cardiac  trouble 
was  followed  by  fits  of  giddiness  and  unconquerable 
insomnia.  He  fell  into  such  a  state  of  neurasthenia 
that,  in  1881,  he  resolved  in  a  moment  of  depression 
to  do  away  with  his  life. 

In  order  to  spare  his  family  the  sorrow  of  an  obvious 
suicide,  he  inoculated  himself  with  relapsing  fever, 
choosing  this  disease  in  order  to  ascertain  at  the  same 
time  whether  it  could  be  inoculated  through  the 
blood.  The  answer  was  in  the  affirmative  :  he  became 
very  seriously  ill.  His  condition  was  aggravated  by 
anxiety  concerning  the  University  ;  for  he  was  suffi- 
ciently conscious  to  be  aware  of  the  events  which  were 
taking  place  in  Russia.  The  murder  of  Alexander  II. 
caused  him  to  foresee  a  political  reaction  of  the  most 
terrible  type  ;  already,  a  reactionary  Rector  had  been 
appointed.  Metchnikoff  developed  intense  jaundice 
and  had  a  serious  relapse  with  alarming  cardiac  weak- 
ness; during  the  crisis  he  had  a  very  distinct  prevision 
of  approaching  death.  This  semi-conscious  state 
was  accompanied  by  a  feeling  of  great  happiness  ; 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         105 

he  imagined  that  he  had  solved  all  human  ethical 
questions.  Much  later,  this  fact  led  him  to  suppose 
that  death  could  actually  be  attended  by  agreeable 
sensations. 

His  robust  nature,  however,  triumphed  over  all 
these  grave  complications,  and,  during  his  convales- 
cence, he  was  rilled  with  a  joy  of  living  such  as  he 
had  never  experienced  before  ;  from  that  moment  his 
moral  and  physical  balance  was  completely  restored. 
There  was  one  unpleasant  sequel  to  his  illness,  an 
acute  affection  of  the  sight  (choroiditis),  but  it  for- 
tunately disappeared  without  leaving  any  traces,  and, 
in  fact,  he  never  suffered  again  from  his  eyes,  in  spite 
of  his  constant  use  of  the  microscope. 

After  his  recovery  he  had  a  renascence  of  vital 
intensity ;  the  life  instinct  developed  in  him  in  a  high 
degree ;  his  health  became  flourishing,  his  energy  and 
power  for  work  greater  than  ever,  and  the  pessim- 
ism of  his  youth  began  to  pale  before  the  optimistic 
dawn  of  his  maturity.  However,  the  relapsing  fever 
had  very  probably  increased,  if  not  started,  the  cardiac 
trouble  which  eventually  caused  his  death. 

During  the  time  when  Metchnikoff  was  forbidden 
the  use  of  the  microscope  on  account  of  his  eye  weak- 
ness, he  studied  Ephemeridse  from  the  point  of  view  of 
natural  selection.  He  wished  to  elucidate  the  manner 
in  which  this  selection  operates  during  the  very  short 
life  of  those  insects :  the  rudimentary  structure  of 
their  buccal  organs  does  not  allow  them  to  feed 
themselves,  and  they  have  no  time  to  adapt  them- 
selves to  external  conditions. 

During  the  1875  holidays,  at  Gmunden  and  on  the 
Danube,  he  observed  the  nuptial  flight  of  the  may- 
flies, a  phenomenon  which  constitutes  their  short 


106         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

adult  existence,  preceded  by  a  long  period  in  the 
larval  state.  Thousands  of  these  diaphanous,  ephe- 
meral insects  swarm  above  the  water  in  a  compact 
cloud ;  now  and  then,  dead  Ephemeridae  fall  like 
snow-flakes,  and  that  is  the  final  and  tragic  completion 
of  the  nuptial  flight.  MetchnikofE  wished  to  unveil  the 
mechanism  of  this  sudden  death,  evidently  due  to 
a  physiological  cause ;  but  he  obtained  no  definite 
results  either  that  year  or  the  following,  when  he 
continued  his  observations  in  the  Caucasus.  He 
realised  that  the  life  of  these  insects  was  too  short  to 
allow  him  to  solve  the  problems  which  interested  him, 
and,  his  eyes  now  being  cured,  he  went  back  to  his 
studies  on  the  origin  of  multicellular  beings  or  metazoa. 

He  studied  the  development  of  inferior  sponges 
and  ascertained  that  they  possess  the  three  embry- 
onic layers  which  correspond  to  those  of  other  animal 
types,  but  that  these  layers  have  not  the  same  degree 
of  independence  or  differentiation.  He  found  that 
in  certain  inferior  sponges  the  mesoderm  develops 
before  the  endoderm  and  gives  birth  to  it.  These  two 
layers,  born  one  from  the  other,  manifest  common 
primordial  characters.  Therefore  he  was  in  no  wise 
surprised  to  discover  that,  in  these  inferior  sponges, 
the  amoeboid  and  mobile  cells  of  the  mesoderm  fulfil 
digestive  functions  equally  with,  and  even  more  than 
those  of  the  endoderm;  in  fact,  with  primitive  beings, 
functional  characters  are  not  more  strictly  delimit- 
ated than  morphological  characters.  It  is  only  a 
more  advanced  differentiation  which  separates  them. 

He  connected  these  new  facts  with  that  which  he 
had  observed  in  1865  in  one  of  the  lower  worms,  the 
earth  planarian  Geodesmus  bilineatus.  This  worm  is 
actually  without  a  digestive  cavity,  for  the  latter  is 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          107 

entirely  filled  by  parenchymatous  cells  inside  which 
digestion  takes  place. 

By  their  primitive  structure,  lower  sponges  and 
worms  come  near  the  higher  Infusoria,  to  which  they 
are  even  more  closely  related  by  this  intercellular 
digestion  which  is  common  to  them. 

This  led  Metchnikoff  to  ask  himself  whether  this 
was  not,  generally  speaking,  the  primitive  mode  of 
digestion.  He  carried  out  numerous  researches  on 
this  point  during  the  following  years,  and  found  the 
same  intercellular  digestion  in  other  lower  worms, 
such  as  the  Mesostoma  and  aquatic  planarians,  and 
afterwards  in  some  lower  Coelentera  and  some  Echino- 
derma.  He  was  thus  enabled  to  establish  definitely 
that  the  primitive  mode  of  digestion  was  really  inter- 
cellular, for  the  lower  multicellular  animals  either  do 
not  possess  any  digestive  cavity  or  else  their  digestive 
cavity  develops  late,  as  for  instance  with  lower  jelly- 
fish or  with  hydropolypi.  Even  when  the  cavity  is 
developed  in  these  inferior  animals,  the  digestive 
functions  are  fulfilled  by  the  mesodermic  cells. 

The  question  as  to  what  are  the  ancestral  forms  of 
multicellular  animals  cannot  be  solved  through  direct 
observation,  for  there  is  a  lacuna  between  them  and 
unicellular  beings,  a  lacuna  which  is  due  to  the  dis- 
appearance of  intermediary  forms.  It  can  only  be 
filled  by  hypotheses,  based  upon  the  embryology  of 
those  animals  which,  in  their  embryonic  development, 
repeat  the  inferior  forms  from  which  they  are  derived, 
thus  reflecting  the  general  evolution  of  living  beings. 
It  was  therefore  to  the  embryology  of  lower  multi- 
cellular  beings  that  Metchnikoff  turned,  in  order  to 
endeavour  to  reconstitute  their  origin  and  to  show  the 
link  between  them  and  unicellular  beings. 


108         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

We  know  that  the  ovule  or  primitive  genital  cell 
of  every  animal  may  be  compared  to  a  unicellular 
organism.  After  fertilisation  the  egg  undergoes  con- 
secutive divisions  or  segmentation ;  each  segment 
constitutes  a  new  cell,  and  their  aggregation  forms  a 
hollow  sphere  called  a  blastula,  which  is  similar  to  a 
colony  of  unicellular  beings.  The  blastula  differenti- 
ates itself  into  embryonic  layers,  the  ectoderm,  endo- 
derm, and  mesoderm  already  mentioned. 

In  the  majority  of  animals  the  origin  of  the  first 
two  layers,  ectoderm  and  endoderm,  is  due  to  the 
invagination  of  one  of  the  poles  of  the  blastula  ;  the 
invaginated  part  of  the  walls  forms  the  internal  layer, 
the  endoderm,  and  lines  the  cavity  produced  by 
invagination ;  this  cavity  thus  becomes  a  digestive 
cavity.  This  stage  of  development,  called  gastrula, 
is  similar  to  a  cup  with  a  double  wall,  of  which 
the  outer  is  the  ectoderm  and  the  inner  the  endo- 
derm. 

This  stage,  discovered  by  Kovalevsky,  is  to  be 
found  in  the  evolution  of  most  animals  and  corre- 
sponds to  the  adult  stage  of  some  of  them.  It  was 
consequently  considered  as  the  primitive  type  of  multi- 
cellular  beings. 

Haeckel  founded  thereupon  his  theory  of  the 
gastrcea,  according  to  which  the  common  ancestor 
of  animals  was  a  lower  animal,  now  disappeared, 
and  similar  to  that  stage  of  development.  He 
therefore  gave  to  this  hypothetical  animal  the  name 
of  gastrcea. 

Metchnikoff,  however,  discovered  among  primitive 
multicellular  animals,  such  as  sponges,  hydroids,  and 
lower  medusae,  a  stage  of  development  still  more 
simple  than  the  gastrula  ;  this  stage  is  without  a 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         109 

digestive  cavity  and  only  assumes  the  gastrula  form 
in  its  ulterior  evolution.  He  also  made  the  remark- 
able discovery  that,  in  the  most  primitive  multi- 
cellular  animals,  the  endoderm  is  formed,  not  by  means 
of  invagination,  but  by  the  migration  of  a  number  of 
flagellated  cells  from  one  pole  of  the  wall  of  the 
blastula  into  the  central  cavity.  These  cells  draw  in 
their  flagellum,  become  amoeboid  and  mobile,  multiply 
by  division,  fill  the  cavity  of  the  blastula,  and  become 
capable  of  digesting.  They  originate  the  digestive 
cells  of  the  complete  organism  and  give  birth  to  the 
mesoderm,  which  explains  how  the  latter  comes  to 
contain  a  number  of  devouring  cells  even  though 
these  do  not  constitute  digestive  organs  properly 
so  called.  Metchnikoff  gave  to  that  stage  the  name 
of  'parenchymella,  for  the  migrating  cells  constitute 
the  endoderm  in  the  condition  of  a  parenchyma. 

The  invariable  presence  of  this  stage  in  the  simplest 
multicellular  animals,  the  primitive  amoeboid  state 
of  the  endodermic  cells,  cases  of  ulterior  transforma- 
tion of  the  parenchymella  into  the  gastrula  form  in 
certain  animals,  the  absence  of  a  differentiated 
digestive  cavity, — all  that  proved,  according  to 
Metchnikoff ,  that  the  parenchymella  is  more  primitive 
than  the  gastrula,  and  is  therefore  entitled  to  be  con- 
sidered the  prototype  of  multicellular  beings. 

He  saw  a  confirmation  of  this  in  the  fact  that 
primitive  adult  animals  also  have  no  digestive  cavity 
but  merely  an  intracellular  digestion  (sponges,  tur- 
bellaria). 

He  concluded  that  the  common  ancestor  of 
multicellular  beings  was  a  being  constituted  by  an 
agglomeration  of  cells  without  a  digestive  cavity,  but 
endowed  with  intracellular  digestion,  like  that  of  the 


110         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

"  parenchymula  "  stage  of  development.  He  therefore 
gave  to  that  hypothetical  ancestor  the  name  of 
parenchymella. 

Later,  in  1886,  he  definitely  formulated  his  theory 
of  the  genesis  of  multicellular  beings,  and  having 
already  stated  the  phagocyte  theory,  he  substituted 
for  the  name  parenchymella  that  of  phagocytella,  which 
indicated  at  the  same  time  the  primitive  mode  of 
digestion  of  that  hypothetical  ancestor. 

Reduced  to  its  simplest  form,  it  presented,  accord- 
ing to  Metchnikoff,  a  certain  analogy  with  a  colony 
composed  of  unicellular  beings  of  two  kinds  :  the 
first,  flagellated,  forming  the  external  layer,  and  the 
others,  amoeboid,  occupying  the  centre  of  the  colony 
and  capable  of  digesting. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  mention  here  that,  in  this 
hypothetical  description,  Metchnikoff  foresaw  the 
existence  of  similar,  but  real,  beings  discovered  a  year 
later  by  Saville  Kent,  namely,  the  flagellated  colonies 
of  Protospongia. 

Thus  the  link  between  the  unicellular  and  the 
multicellular  beings  could  be  constituted  through  the 
intermediary  of  flagellated  colonies  on  the  one  hand 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  of  beings  similar  to  a  phago- 
cytella. The  indivisible  colony  became  the  muUi- 
cellular  individual. 

While  studying  the  genealogy  of  beings,  Metch- 
nikoff continued  his  researches  on  intracellular  diges- 
tion. In  1879,  at  Naples  and  at  Messina,  he  was 
able  to  establish  the  fact  that  the  mesodermic  cells 
of  many  larvae  of  Echinodermata  and  Ccelenterata, 
endowed  with  a  digestive  tube,  nevertheless  contained 
strange  bodies.  Therefore,  even  complicated  organ- 
isms with  a  differentiated  digestive  system  could  still 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         111 

contain  at  the  same  time  some  primitive  cells  with 
an  autonomous  digestion. 

All  these  researches  on  the  unity  of  the  origin  of 
multicellular  beings  and  their  morphological  elements, 
and  also  those  concerning  intracellular  digestion,  were 
gradually  preparing  Metchnikofl's  mind  for  the  con- 
ception of  the  phagocyte  theory. 

We  spent  the  summer  of  1880  with  my  family  in 
the  country.  The  cereals  were  invaded  by  a  harmful 
beetle,  the  Anisoplia  austriaca,  which  was  devastat- 
ing the  country.  MetchnikofE  took  the  study  of  this 
scourge  to  heart  and  tried  to  find  a  remedy.  He 
had,  the  preceding  year,  observed  a  dead  fly  enveloped 
with  a  sort  of  fungus  which  had  evidently  been  the 
cause  of  its  death.  Hence  he  conceived  the  idea  that 
it  might  be  possible  to  combat  harmful  insects  by 
provoking  epidemics  among  them.  He  now  returned 
to  this  idea  ;  on  dead  bodies  of  Anisoplia  he  found 
a  small  fungus,  the  muscardine,  which  was  invading 
the  insects  by  means  of  filaments,  and  he  succeeded 
in  infecting  healthy  beetles. 

At  first  he  confined  himself  to  laboratory  experi- 
ments ;  then  a  great  landowner,  Count  Bobrinsky, 
placed  experimental  fields  at  his  disposal.  As  the 
acquired  results  were  very  encouraging,  Metchnikofi, 
forced  to  leave  the  neighbourhood,  left  a  young 
entomologist  in  charge  of  the  application  of  his 
method.  So  far  as  he  himself  was  concerned,  this 
study  proved  the  starting-point  of  his  researches  on 
infectious  diseases. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

Death  of  his  father-  and  mother-in-law — Management  of  country  estates 
— Agitation  and  difficulties — Departure  for  Messina  with  young 
brothers-  and  sisters-in-law. 

IN  the  spring  of  1881,  Metchnikoff  having  recovered 
from  relapsing  fever,  we  went  to  stay  with  my  parents 
at  KiefE  and  found  my  father  dying.  He  entrusted 
Elie  with  the  care  of  the  family,  and  they  came  to 
live  with  us  at  Odessa.  But,  the  following  year,  we 
had  the  misfortune  to  lose  my  mother  also.  From 
that  moment  my  husband  took  upon  himself  the 
responsibility  of  the  whole  family. 

Our  resources  came  from  landed  property,  and  he, 
who  had  never  concerned  himself  with  rural  questions, 
had  to  make  himself  acquainted  with  them.  In  this 
he  was  greatly  helped  by  a  neighbour,  Count  Bobrinsky, 
through  whose  influence  he  came  to  abandon  the  purely 
theoretical  opinions  he  had  hitherto  held  concerning 
agrarian  questions.  He  had  considered  communal  pro- 
perty as  a  desirable  agrarian  system  :  Count  Bobrinsky 
showed  him  that  it  was  not  so,  at  any  rate  in  Little 
Kussia. 

Metchnikoff  came  to  the  country  with  the  keenest 
desire  to  make  himself  useful.  First  of  all  he  devoted 
the  gratuity  which  he  had  received  on  leaving  the 
University,  to  a  school  which  my  sister  and  myself 
desired  to  open  in  our  family  property.  But  we  were 
112 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         113 

met  by  administrative  opposition  which  nearly 
wrecked  our  plan,  under  the  pretext  that  it  was 
intended  for  political  propaganda.  And  though 
cordial  relations  were  established  from  the  first 
between  Metchnikofi  and  the  peasantry,  many  com- 
plications were  unavoidable,  due  to  the  general 
agrarian  situation,  to  the  insufficiency  of  the  peasants' 
allotments,  and  to  their  primitive  methods  of  culti- 
vation. 

My  father,  whose  property  was  in  the  province  of 
Kiefi,  had  inherited  another  domain  in  that  of 
Kherson  ;  Metchnikofi  therefore  had  to  manage  both 
estates  and  to  adapt  himself  to  their  very  different 
respective  circumstances.  The  majority  of  the  farmers 
in  Little  Kussia  at  that  time  were  Jews  and  were 
beginning  to  be  persecuted  both  by  the  Government 
and  by  the  peasants  ;  Elie  was  constantly  obliged  to 
intervene.  In  the  province  of  Kherson,  it  was  a 
tradition  with  the  peasants  that  the  land  should 
belong  to  them,  and  they  imagined  that  this  could 
be  brought  about  by  the  simple  elimination  of  the 
farmers.  Therefore  they  inflicted  constant  vexations 
upon  the  latter,  allowing  cattle  to  pasture  in  their 
crops,  pulling  up  their  beetroots,  etc.  Metchnikofi 
attempted  in  vain  to  re-establish  peace  by  means  of 
compromise  ;  he  persuaded  a  farmer  to  sub-let  part 
of  the  land  to  the  peasants,  but  this  had  to  be  given 
up,  for  the  latter  did  not  carry  out  their  engagements. 
Relations  between  the  farmers  and  the  peasants  were 
getting  worse  and  worse,  and  Metchnikofi,  foreseeing 
a  catastrophe,  warned  the  local  administration  that 
the  situation  was  getting  very  grave  and  would  lead 
to  irreparable  consequences.  He  was  merely  told  that 
preventive  measures  would  be  useless ;  hereupon  the 

I 


114         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

peasants  brutally  murdered  a  keeper  who  was  turning 
the  cattle  away  from  the  crops.  Then  at  last  the 
administration  awoke,  arrested  the  murderers,  and 
twelve  men  were  exiled  to  Siberia. 

All  this  caused  Metchnikoff  the  deepest  anxiety, 
the  more  so  that  he  was  absolutely  incapable  of 
altering  the  situation.  As  soon  as  it  became  possible, 
he  sold  to  the  peasants  that  portion  of  the  land  which 
belonged  to  us  personally ;  until  then,  the  property 
had  been  common  to  the  whole  family,  of  which  the 
younger  members  were  not  yet  of  age.  This,  however, 
was  not  a  general  solution,  and  these  moral  pre- 
occupations, as  well  as  the  heavy  responsibility  in- 
cumbent upon  him,  kept  him  from  his  scientific  work. 
He  was  therefore  very  pleased  to  hand  over  the 
management  of  the  property  to  one  of  my  brothers 
who  had  just  completed  his  studies  in  a  Higher 
Agricultural  School,  and,  in  spite  of  difficult  condi- 
tions, Elie  had  the  satisfaction  of  giving  up  every- 
thing in  good  order. 

Thanks  to  my  parents'  inheritance,  he  was  able 
to  abandon  his  share  of  the  Panassovka  patrimony 
to  the  children  of  his  brother  and  to  live  henceforth 
independently.  He  wished  to  pursue  researches  on 
the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean :  therefore,  in  the 
autumn  of  the  year  1882,  we  went  to  Messina  with 
my  two  sisters  and  my  three  young  brothers.  The 
children  were  no  trouble  to  Elie,  who  loved  them ; 
on  the  contrary,  he  enjoyed  organising  the  journey 
and  arranging  all  sorts  of  pleasures  for  them.  The 
children,  accustomed  to  his  kindly  indulgence,  always 
came  to  "  the  Prophet  "  for  everything  they  wanted.1 

1  "  Elie  "  is  the  French  form  of  Elijah,  in  Russian  Ilia,  and  was  ulti- 
mately adopted  by  Metchnikoff. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

Messina — Inception  of  the  phagocyte  theory — Encouragement  from 
Virchow  and  Kleinenberg — First  paper  on  phagocytosis  at  the 
Odessa  Congress  in  1883 — The  question  of  Immunity — Article  in 
Virchow's  Archiv,  1884. 

AT  Messina,  we  settled  in  a  suburb,  the  Ringo,  on  the 
quay  of  the  Straits,  in  a  small  flat  with  a  garden  and 
a  splendid  view  over  the  sea.  We  did  not  have 
much  room,  and  the  laboratory  had  to  be  installed  in 
the  drawing-room,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  Elie  only 
had  to  cross  the  quay  in  order  to  find  the  fisherman 
who  provided  him  with  the  material  needed  for  his 
researches  and  with  whom  we  frequently  went  sailing. 
Metchnikofi  loved  Messina,  with  its  rich  marine 
fauna  and  beautiful  scenery.  The  splendid  view  of 
the  sea  and  the  calm  outline  of  the  Calabrian  coast 
across  the  Straits  delighted  him.  He  enjoyed  it  all 
the  more  after  the  many  excitements  of  life  at  the 
University,  and  eagerly  gave  himself  up  to  his 
researches.  Often,  in  later  years,  he  delighted  to 
recall  memories  of  that  period,  the  more  so  that  this 
was  connected  with  the  principal  phase  of  scientific 
activity  which  led  to  the  formation  of  his  phagocyte 
theory.  After  the  earthquake  in  1908,  he  wrote  a 
few  pages  on  Messina  and  ended  his  article  by  the 
following  lines : 

Thus  it  was   in  Messina   that  the  great  event  of  my 
scientific  life  took  place.    A  zoologist  until  then,  I  suddenly 
115 


116         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

became  a  pathologist.  I  entered  into  a  new  road  in  which 
my  later  activity  was  to  be  exerted. 

It  is  with  warm  feeling  that  I  evoke  that  distant  past 
and  with  tenderness  that  I  think  of  Messina,  of  which  the 
terrible  fate  has  deeply  moved  my  heart. 

They  say  that  Messina  will  be  rebuilt  in  the  same  place 
but  in  a  different  way.  Houses  will  be  constructed  of  light 
materials,  they  will  be  low,  and  the  streets  broad.  .  .  . 

The  town  will  be  a  new  Messina,  not  "  my  Messina,"  not 
that  with  which  so  many  dear  memories  are  associated  in 
my  mind,  .  .  . 

Metchnikoff  continued  to  study  intracellular  diges- 
tion and  the  origin  of  the  intestine.  He  foresaw 
that  the  solution  of  those  problems  would  lead  to 
general  results  of  great  importance.  The  study  of 
medusae  and  of  their  mesodermic  digestion  confirmed 
him  more  and  more  in  the  conviction  that  the  meso- 
derm  was  a  vestige  of  elements  with  a  primitive 
digestive  function.  In  lower  beings,  such  as  sponges, 
this  function  takes  place  without  being  differentiated, 
whilst  with  other  Ccelentera  and  with  some  Echino- 
derma  the  endoderm  gives  birth  to  a  digestive 
cavity ;  yet,  the  mobile  cells  of  the  mesoderm  pre- 
serve their  faculty  of  intracellular  digestion.  As  he 
studied  these  phenomena  more  closely,  he  ascertained 
that  mesodermic  cells  accumulated  around  grains  of 
carmine  introduced  into  the  organism. 

All  this  prepared  the  ground  for  the  phagocyte 
theory,  of  which  lie  himself  described  the  inception 
in  the  following  words  : 

I  was  resting  from  the  shock  of  the  events  which  provoked 
my  resignation  from  the  University  and  indulging  enthusi- 
astically in  researches  in  the  splendid  setting  of  the  Straits 
of  Messina. 

One  day  when  the  whole  family  had  gone  to  a  circus  to  see 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF        117 

some  extraordinary  performing  apes,  I  remained  alone  with 
my  microscope,  observing  the  life  in  the  mobile  cells  of  a 
transparent  star-fish  larva,  when  a  new  thought  suddenly 
flashed  across  my  brain.  It  struck  me  that  similar  cells 
might  serve  in  the  defence  of  the  organism  against  intruders. 
Feeling  that  there  was  in  this  something  of  surpassing  interest, 
I  felt  so  excited  that  I  began  striding  up  and  down  the  room 
and  even  went  to  the  seashore  in  order  to  collect  my  thoughts. 

I  said  to  myself  that,  if  my  supposition  was  true,  a  splinter 
introduced  into  the  body  of  a  star-fish  larva,  devoid  of  blood- 
vessels or  of  a  nervous  system,  should  soon  be  surrounded  by 
mobile  cells  as  is  to  be  observed  in  a  man  who  runs  a  splinter 
into  his  finger.  This  was  no  sooner  said  than  done. 

There  was  a  small  garden  to  our  dwelling,  in  which  we  had 
a  few  days  previously  organised  a  "  Christmas  tree  "  for  the 
children  on  a  little  tangerine  tree ;  I  fetched  from  it  a  few 
rose  thorns  and  introduced  them  at  once  under  the  skin  of 
some  beautiful  star-fish  larvae  as  transparent  as  water. 

I  was  too  excited  to  sleep  that  night  in  the  expectation  of 
the  result  of  my  experiment,  and  very  early  the  next  morning 
I  ascertained  that  it  had  fully  succeeded. 

That  experiment  formed  the  basis  of  the  phagocyte  theory, 
to  the  development  of  which  I  devoted  the  next  twenty-five 
years  of  my  life. 

This  very  simple  experiment  struck  Metchnikoff 
by  its  intimate  similarity  with  the  phenomenon  which 
takes  place  in  the  formation  of  pus,  the  diapedesis  x 
of  inflammation  in  man  and  the  higher  animals.  The 
white  blood  corpuscles,  or  leucocytes,  which  consti- 
tute pus,  are  mobile  mesodermic  cells.  But,  while 
with  higher  animals  the  phenomenon  is  complicated 
by  the  existence  of  blood-vessels  and  a  nervous 
system,  in  a  star-fish  larva,  devoid  of  those  organs, 
the  same  phenomenon  is  reduced  to  the  accumulation 

1  Migration  of  the  white  blood  corpuscles  (leucocytes)  through  the  walls 
of  blood-vessels. 

N 


118         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

of  mobile  cells  around  the  splinter.  This  proves  that 
the  essence  of  inflammation  consists  in  the  reaction 
of  the  mobile  cells,  whilst  vascular  and  nervous  inter- 
vention has  but  a  secondary  significance.  Therefore, 
if  the  phenomenon  is  considered  in  its  simplest  expres- 
sion, inflammation  is  merely  a  reaction  of  the  meso- 
dermic  cells  against  an  external  agent. 

MetchnikofE  then  reasoned  as  follows :  In  man, 
microbes  are  usually  the  cause  which  provokes  in- 
flammation; therefore  it  is  against  those  intruders 
that  the  mobile  mesodermic  cells  have  to  strive. 
These  mobile  cells  must  destroy  the  microbes  by 
digesting  them  and  thus  bring  about  a  cure. 

Inflammation  is  thus  a  curative  reaction  of  the 
organism,  and  morbid  symptoms  are  no  other  than 
the  signs  of  the  struggle  between  the  mesodermic 
cells  and  the  microbes. 

In  order  to  verify  these  conjectures,  he  started 
studying  the  englobing  of  microbes  by  mesodermic 
cells  in  larvae  and  in  other  marine  invertebrates 
which  he  inoculated. 

At  that  time,  a  well-known  German  scientist, 
Kleinenberg,  was  Professor  of  Zoology  at  Messina. 
Metchnikoff  imparted  his  ideas  to  him  and  showed 
him  his  experiments.  Kleinenberg  encouraged  him 
very  much ;  he  looked  upon  his  theory  as  "  an 
Hippocratic  thought "  and  advised  him  to  publish 
it  at  once. 

Metchnikoff  was  also  greatly  encouraged  by 
Virchow,  who  happened  to  pass  through  Messina  and 
came  to  see  his  preparations  and  his  experiments, 
which  seemed  to  him  conclusive.  However,  Virchow 
advised  him  to  proceed  with  the  greatest  prudence 
in  their  interpretation,  as,  he  said,  the  theory  of 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         119 

inflammation  admitted  in  contemporary  medicine  was 
exactly  contrary  to  MetchnikoS's.  It  was  believed 
that  the  leucocytes,  far  from  destroying  microbes, 
spread  them  by  carrying  them  and  by  forming  a 
medium  favourable  to  their  growth. 

Metchnikofi  always  preserved  a  deep  gratitude 
towards  Virchow  and  Kleinenberg  for  the  moral 
support  which  they  gave  him  at  that  time. 

When  the  hot  weather  came,  we  left  Messina  for 
Biva,  a  delicious  summer  resort  on  the  shores  of  the 
Lake  of  Garda.  There,  Metchnikofi  wrote  his  first 
memoir  on  the  reaction  of  inflammation  and  on  the 
digestion  of  microbes  by  the  mesodermic  cells  of 
lower  invertebrates.  On  the  way  back  to  Kussia 
through  Vienna,  he  went  to  see  the  Professor  of 
Zoology,  Glaus ;  he  found  other  colleagues  with  him 
and  expounded  his  theory  to  them.  They  were  much 
interested,  and  he  asked  them  for  a  Greek  translation 
of  the  words  "  devouring  cells,"  and  that  is  how  they 
were  given  the  name  of  phagocytes. 

Glaus  asked  him  for  his  memoir  for  the  Review 
which  he  edited  and  in  which  it  appeared  soon  after- 
wards, in  1883.1  The  new-born  "  phagocyte  theory  " 
was  thus  very  well  received  by  naturalists  and  by 
Virchow,  the  father  of  cellular  pathology. 

Having  returned  to  Russia,  we  went  to  the  country, 
where  Elie  had  to  attend  to  family  business ;  never- 
theless, he  continued  his  researches  in  every  leisure 
moment.  He  had  observed  in  Echinoderma  that, 
during  the  transformation  of  their  larvae,  the  parts 
becoming  atrophied  were  englobed  by  mesodermic 

1  Arbeiten  des  zool  Inst.  zu  Wien,  Bd.  v.  Heft  ii.  p.  141.  "Unter- 
suchung  iiber  die  intracellulare  Verdauung  bei  wirbellosen  Tieren,"  E. 
Metchnikoff. 


120         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

mobile  cells.  In  those  observations  he  was  delighted 
to  have  found  an  example  of  physiological  inflam- 
mation, i.e.  one  which  presented  itself  in  normal  and 
non-morbid  conditions.  He  thought  he  might  observe 
it  also  during  the  metamorphosis  of  the  tadpole  into 
a  frog,  whilst  the  tail  was  being  atrophied.  But  he 
found  that,  instead  of  the  leucocytes  of  the  blood, 
certain  cells  from  the  muscular  tissue  were  those  which 
devoured  the  enfeebled  elements  of  the  tail ;  he  thus 
learnt  that  phagocytes  might  be,  not  only  the  white 
blood  corpuscles,  but  other  cells  of  mesodermic  origin.1 

In  autumn  1883  he  read  his  first  paper  on  phago- 
cytosis to  a  congress  of  physicians  and  naturalists  at 
Odessa.2  He  compared  the  phagocytes  to  an  army 
hurling  itself  upon  the  enemy  and  looked  upon  the 
phagocytic  reaction  as  a  defensive  force  of  the 
organism. 

In  that  paper  itself  and  from  that  moment  onwards, 
the  trend  of  his  ideas  towards  optimism  becomes  visible. 
By  discovering  the  phagocytic  reaction  of  the  organ- 
ism, he  made  a  first  breach  in  his  philosophy  of  human 
nature,  hitherto  so  pessimistic  ;  he  discovered  within 
it  a  salutary  element  which  could  be  utilised  by 
science  to  combat  its  discords.  He  began  to  have 
some  faith  in  the  power  of  knowledge,  not  only  for 
this  struggle,  but  also  for  the  establishment  of  a 
rational  conception  of  life  in  general.  Thus  he  said 
in  his  paper  to  the  Odessa  Congress  : 

The  theoretical  study  of  Natural  History  problems  (in 
the  largest  sense  of  the  word)  alone  can  provide  a  critical 

1  It  was  only  in  1892  that  he  completed  and  developed  his  observations. 
He  found  that  the  cells  of  the  sarcoplasma  of  the  muscular  tissue  devoured 
its  contractile  part,  the  myoplasma. 

2  This  paper  was  entitled  "  Forces  curatives  de  1'organisme." 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         121 

method  for  the  comprehension  of  truth  and  lead  to  a  definite 
conception  of  life,  or  at  least  allow  ua  to  approach  one. 

And  yet,  until  then,  the  theory  of  phagocytosis 
as  a  curative  force  of  the  organism  was  but  a  hypo- 
thesis, for  he  had  not  yet  observed  spontaneous 
phagocytosis  in  diseases  and  did  not  know  pathogenic 
microbes.  He  therefore  sought  to  study  them  in  lower 
animals,  whose  simple  structure  made  the  observa- 
tion easier.  He  found  some  small,  transparent,  fresh- 
water crustaceans,  called  daphnice,  which  were  diseased 
and  easy  to  place  alive  under  a  microscope.  These 
crustaceans  are  often  infected  by  a  parasite  fungus 
(Monospora  bicuspidata),  of  which  the  spores,  shaped 
like  sharp  needles,  are  introduced  with  food  into  the 
digestive  tube,  traverse  the  walls  of  it,  and  thus 
penetrate  into  the  general  cavity  of  the  body.  They 
are  immediately  attacked  by  mobile  phagocytes, 
which  either  singly  or  in  groups  englobe  them ;  if  the 
phagocytes  succeed  in  digesting  the  spores,  the 
daphnia  recovers  ;  in  the  contrary  case,  the  spores 
germinate  and  develop  into  small  fungi  which  invade 
the  organism  and  kill  it.  The  recovery  or  death  of 
the  daphnia  depends  therefore  on  the  issue  of  the 
struggle.1  This  observation  gave  final  confirmation 
to  the  hypothesis  of  the  curative  forces  of  the  organism. 

Metchnikoff  was  not  content  with  observing  lower 
animals  but  wished  to  study  the  reaction  of  the 
organism  of  mammals  in  infectious  diseases.  At  that 
time,  the  best-known  microbe  was  the  bacillus  of 
anthrax.  He  therefore  chose  that  for  his  researches 
and  ascertained  that  phagocytosis  varied  with  the 
virulence  of  the  microbes ;  thus,  while  phagocytes  did 

1  Virchow's  Archiv,  vol.  96,  p.  177. 


122         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

not  attack  virulent  bacteria,  they  attacked  and 
rapidly  digested  attenuated  bacteria.  Moreover,  he 
observed  a  very  active  phagocytosis  in  refractory 
animals  and  the  reverse  in  sensitive  ones. 

He  thus  came  face  to  face  with  the  question  of 
immunity. 

He  approached  it  by  a  comparative  examination 
of  the  reaction  of  the  organism  of  vaccinated  rabbits 
and  of  non- vaccinated  ones,  and  ascertained  that  an 
active  phagocytosis  was  only  manifested  in  a  pre- 
viously vaccinated  organism.  Metchnikoff  explained 
these  facts  by  the  theory  that  the  phagocytes  became 
accustomed,  gradually,  through  vaccination,  to  strive 
against  more  and  more  virulent  microbes. 

From  that  moment,  immunity  appeared  to  him  as 
being  no  other  than  this  progressive  hardening.  He 
published  his  researches  in  1884  in  Virchow's  Archiv, 
and  impatiently  awaited  medical  reviews,  hoping  to 
find  some  answer,  but  the  memoir  passed  unnoticed ; 
the  full  significance  of  it  had  not  been  grasped. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

Ill-health  of  his  wife  and  sister-in-law — Journey  to  Tangiers  through 
Spain — Villefranche — Baumgarten  criticises  the  phagocyte  theory. 

IN  1884,  Metchnikofl's  work  was  interrupted  by  the 
ill-health  of  my  eldest  sister  and  of  myself  ;  physicians 
considered  that  we  had  weak  lungs  and  advised  that 
we  should  spend  the  winter  in  the  South.  Elie,  full 
of  anxiety,  hastened  to  take  us  there. 

My  younger  brothers  were  now  old  enough  to 
remain  at  school  in  our  absence  so  as  to  go  on  with 
their  studies ;  we  therefore  started  with  my  two 
sisters.  As  cholera  was  raging  in  Italy,  we  went  to 
Spain,  hoping  to  find  a  place  with  a  mild  climate  and 
conditions  favourable  to  my  husband's  work.  But 
we  traversed  the  whole  country  without  finding  the 
right  combination,  and,  as  we  had  come  too  far  to 
go  back,  we  decided  to  spend  the  winter  on  the 
African  coast,  at  Tangiers,  close  to  Gibraltar  where  we 
were. 

Metchnikofi  had  not  much  taste  for  sight-seeing, 
but,  with  his  inquisitive  and  observing  mind,  liked  to 
understand  what  he  saw,  and  never  failed  to  acquaint 
himself  with  the  history  of  the  countries  which  we 
traversed  and  which,  with  his  ever-ready  solicitude,  he 
wanted  us  to  see.  We  therefore  saw  every  interesting 
town  on  our  route  through  Spain.  In  the  evenings  we 
read  together  works  on  the  history  and  art  of  the 

123 


124         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

country,  and  in  the  day-time  we  went  for  long  rambles 
in  order  to  examine  all  that  there  was  to  see.  The 
history  of  the  country,  full  of  the  sombre  fanaticism 
which  is  reflected  in  its  art,  the  austere  aridity  of  the 
central  plateau  of  the  land,  the  reserved  temper  of 
the  population — none  of  that  found  any  echo  in  the 
vibrating,  sunlight-loving  soul  of  Metchnikoff. 

Gentle  Italy,  her  exuberant  life  and  highly-cultured 
past,  charmed  him  much  more.  He  was  conse- 
quently better  pleased  with  Southern  Spain,  which 
is  more  similar  to  Italy.  He  was  greatly  impressed 
by  the  grandiose  site  and  luminous  atmosphere  of 
Granada  and  the  Alhambra  and  by  the  superb  gardens 
of  Malaga,  with  their  tropical  plants  and  avenues  of 
palm  trees. 

At  Gibraltar,  he  was  greatly  interested  as  a  zoo- 
logist in  the  only  monkeys  (Macaques  or  Barbary 
apes)  which  have  remained  wild  in  Europe  ;  he  never 
tired  of  watching  their  habits  whilst  those  amusing 
creatures  jumped  from  tree  to  tree  above  our  heads. 

He  had  ample  leisure  to  do  so,  fora  frightful  tempest 
kept  us  at  Gibraltar,  preventing  the  crossing  of  the 
Straits.  As  Metchnikoff  was  very  anxious  to  set  to 
work,  we  took  the  first  steamship  which  ventured  out, 
but  the  sea  was  still  running  so  high  that  our  ship 
was  damaged  and  we  had  to  go  back.  A  panic 
took  possession  of  the  passengers,  during  which  my 
sisters  and  I  were  struck  by  the  calmness  of  Elie, 
who  did  not  seem  to  realise  the  danger.  After  a  delay 
of  a  few  days,  we  were  at  last  able  to  cross. 

Our  first  impression  of  Tangiers,  an  Arab  port  of 
a  thoroughly  Oriental  type,  was  extremely  vivid. 
The  city  lay  before  us  with  its  tall  minarets  and  flat 
roofs,  shining  white  under  the  burning  sun.  The 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          125 

steamer  dropped  anchor  some  distance  from  the  land- 
ing stage,  and  we  were  taken  ashore  on  small  boats, 
immediately  to  be  surrounded  by  a  motley  crowd  with 
faces  varying  from  the  pale  olive  of  the  pure  Arab 
to  the  coal-black  of  the  negro.  All  these  people,  in 
brilliant  and  picturesque  garments,  were  shouting, 
gesticulating,  fighting  for  the  possession  of  passengers 
and  their  luggage,  dragging  them  into  the  boats  or 
carrying  them  on  their  backs,  themselves  standing 
up  to  their  waists  in  water. 

That  feverish  agitation,  noise,  and  glaring  sun- 
light introduced  us  suddenly  to  new  and  violent 
sensations. 

Already  at  Gibraltar,  Metchnikoff  had  made 
arrangements  with  a  Spanish-speaking  Arab  from 
Tangiers  who  undertook  our  installation.  He  provided 
us  with  a  very  primitive  dwelling,  himself  serving  as 
our  guide,  cook,  and  general  factotum. 

We  hastened  to  look  for  zoological  material : 
alas,  the  sea  was  almost  a  desert.  After  a  long 
search  we  only  found  a  few  rare  sea-urchins,  and 
Metchnikofi  had  to  content  himself  with  this  meagre 
fauna  during  the  whole  of  the  winter.  He  resigned 
himself  to  the  study  of  the  embryology  of  sea-urchins 
in  order  to  fill  a  few  lacunae  in  his  previous  researches. 
As  he  could  not  work  much  for  lack  of  materials,  he 
came  with  us  for  long  excursions,  during  which  he 
used  to  improvise  interminable  and  very  amusing 
tales  with  which  to  entertain  my  little  sister. 

At  the  beginning  of  our  stay  we  were  greatly 
interested  by  the  life  and  customs  of  the  country. 
The  picturesque  and  varied  crowd,  the  dignified  and 
biblical  types  of  Arabs,  the  bronzed  Berbers,  negroes, 
fanatical  sects  of  Aissawas,  snake-charmers,  the  jousts, 


126         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

and  mad  races  of  cavalry  across  the  sandy  beach; 
opium  smokers ;  mysterious  silhouettes  of  veiled 
women;  the  call  to  prayer  from  the  tall  minarets 
—  all  that  strange  and  exotic  life  fascinated  us. 
But  after  a  time  the  wild  customs,  continual  shout- 
ing on  the  occasion  of  every  ceremony,  vendettas, 
cruel  fanaticism,  and  also  the  absolute  lack  of  in- 
tellectual resources,  began  to  tell  on  our  nerves. 
Inactivity  weighed  heavily  upon  Metchnikoff ;  never- 
theless, he  bore  his  ill-luck  with  his  usual  courage 
and  gaiety,  finding  great  consolation  in  the  excellent 
influence  that  the  climate  of  Tangiers  had  upon  all 
our  healths. 

At  last,  in  the  spring,  we  started  for  Villefranche, 
where  he  immediately  set  to  work  with  success  upon 
the  embryology  of  jelly-fish ;  an  important  mono- 
graph on  that  subject  was  published  by  him  in  1886. 
In  it  he  gave  definite  form  to  his  theory  of  the  phago- 
cytella  and  the  genetic  relationships  of  animals  and 
of  their  primitive  organs,  a  theory  already  mentioned 
above  (p.  110). 

From  Villefranche  we  went  to  Trieste,  where 
Metchnikoff  studied  star-fish  and  filled  the  lacunae  in 
his  researches  on  the  origin  of  the  mesoderm. 

In  a  medical  review  which  he  read  at  Trieste,  he 
found  the  first  account  of  his  phagocyte  theory  ; 
it  was  an  unfavourable  and  hostile  criticism  by  a 
German  scientist  of  the  name  of  Baumgarten,  en- 
deavouring to  prove  that  Metchnikofi's  deductions 
were  inadmissible.  This  grieved  and  pained  him  very 
much,  but  he  immediately  recovered  himself  and 
strongly  determined  to  study  the  medical  side  of  the 
question  in  order  to  prove  on  that  ground  that  his 
theory  was  well-founded. 


CHAPTER  XX 

\ 

A   Bacteriological   Institute   in   Odessa — Unsatisfactory   conditions — 
Experiments  on  erysipelas  and  on  relapsing  fever. 

THE  results  of  Pasteur's  antirabic  inoculations  were 
published  in  1885.  The  Municipality  of  Odessa, 
desirous  of  founding  a  bacteriological  station  in  that 
town,  sent  Dr.  Gamaleia  to  Paris  to  study  the  new 
method.  Metchnikofi  was  appointed  Scientific  Direc- 
tor of  the  new  institution,  and  Drs.  Gamaleia  and 
Bardach,  former  pupils  of  his,  were  entrusted  with  the 
preparation  of  vaccines  and  preventive  inoculations. 
The  Institute,  opened  in  1886,  was  founded  at  the 
expense  of  the  Municipality  of  Odessa  and  of  the 
Zemstvo  of  the  Kherson  Province. 

Metchnikofi  himself  describes  as  follows  the  short 
time  he  spent  in  that  Institute  : 

.  .  .  Having  given  up  my  State  work,  I  placed  myself 
at  the  service  of  the  city  and  the  Zemstvo. 

Absorbed  as  I  was  by  the  scientific  part  of  the  work,  I 
confided  to  my  young  colleagues  the  practical  part,  i.e.  the 
vaccinations  and  the  perfection  of  vaccines. 

It  was  to  be  supposed  that  all  would  go  very  well. 

Work  hi  the  new  Institute  began  with  ardour.  But,  very 
soon,  a  strong  opposition  manifested  itself  against  it. 

The  medical  administration  began  to  make  incursions  into 
the  Institute,  with  a  view  to  finding  some  infractions  of  the 
regulations. 

Medical  society  was  hostile  to  every  work  which  issued 

127 


128         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

from  the  laboratory.  The  institutions  which  had  subscribed 
funds  for  the  Institute  were  demanding  practical  results, 
while  all  necessary  work  towards  that  object  was  met  by 
every  sort  of  obstacle. 

For  instance,  in  order  to  destroy  certain  voles,  very 
harmful  to  the  cereals  of  Southern  Russia,  we  proposed  to 
make  experiments  as  to  infecting  those  rodents  with  the 
microbe  of  chicken  cholera.  Laboratory  experiments  were 
begun  with  that  object.  But,  one  day,  I  received  an  order  from 
the  Prefect  peremptorily  forbidding  those  experiments.  This 
measure  had  been  taken  at  the  instigation  of  local  physicians  ; 
having  seen  in  a  Petersburg  newspaper  an  article  by  some 
one  who  had  not  a  notion  of  bacteriology,  they  had  assured 
the  Prefect  that  chicken  cholera  could  turn  into  Asiatic  cholera. 

I  had  to  appeal  to  the  General  Governor,  who  ended  by 
countermanding  the  Prefect's  order  ;  nevertheless  this  incident 
was  not  without  regrettable  consequences  concerning  the 
ulterior  activities  of  the  Institute. 

Apart  from  all  that,  a  deep  scission  took  place  between  the 
members,  though  they  were  so  few,  of  the  Institute  itself,  and 
this  had  fatal  consequences. 

The  men  who  were  in  charge  of  the  practical  work  ceased 
to  work  in  concert ;  I  could  not  take  their  place,  being  over- 
whelmed with  scientific  researches,  besides  which,  holding  no 
medical  degree,  I  was  not  qualified  to  perform  vaccinations 
on  human  beings. 

Under  those  conditions,  I  understood  that  in  my  quality 
as  a  theoretician,  I  should  do  well  to  retire,  leaving  the 
laboratory  to  practitioners  who,  bearing  full  responsibility, 
would  fill  the  part  better. 

During  his  stay  at  the  Odessa  Bacteriological 
Institute,  MetchnikofE  had  busied  himself  with  infec- 
tious diseases  in  order  to  answer  the  first  objections 
to  his  theory.  He  began  by  the  microbes  of  erysipelas 
and  showed  that  the  phenomena  of  the  disease,  as 
well  as  those  of  recovery,  were  in  full  accord  with 
the  postulates  of  the  phagocyte  theory. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          129 

And  then  he  studied  relapsing  fever  in  order  to 
answer  Baumgarten's  objections,  affirming  that  there 
was  no  phagocytic  reaction  in  that  disease,  though  it 
almost  invariably  ended  in  recovery.  Experiments 
on  man  not  being  possible,  Metchnikoff  procured 
some  monkeys,  which  he  inoculated  with  relapsing 
fever,  and  ascertained  that  Baumgarten's  error  was 
due  to  the  fact  that  he  had  only  looked  for  phago- 
cytosis in  the  patient's  blood,  whilst  it  really  took 
place  in  the  spleen. 

These  researches  on  erysipelas  and  relapsing  fever 
were  published  in  Virchow's  Archives  in  1887.  Besides 
this  scientific  work,  he  was  also  giving  lectures  on 
bacteriology  to  some  physicians,  and  was  in  full  pro- 
ductive activity  when  external  opposition  and  the 
discord  among  his  collaborators  in  the  Institute  itself 
forced  upon  him  the  conviction  that  he  could  remain 
there  no  longer. 

At  that  very  moment  the  Prince  of  Oldenburg, 
having  founded  a  Bacteriological  Institute  at  Peters- 
burg, invited  Metchnikoff  to  take  charge  of  it.  He 
had  to  refuse,  fearing  the  Northern  climate  for  my 
health,  and  knowing  from  experience  that  it  was 
impossible  for  a  layman  to  manage  an  Institute  with 
a  medical  staff.  Yet  he  could  not  do  without  a 
laboratory.  Seeing  no  possibility  of  having  one  in 
Russia,  he  decided  to  look  abroad  for  a  refuge  and  a 
laboratory. 

"  Having  learnt  from  experience  at  Odessa,"  he 
wrote,  "  how  difficult  was  the  struggle  against  an 
opposition  coming  from  all  sides  and  devoid  of 
reasonable  causes,  I  preferred  to  go  abroad  to  look 
for  a  peaceful  shelter  for  my  scientific  researches." 

We  were  no  longer  held  back  by  family  considera- 

K 


130         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

tions  ;  our  links  with  Russia  had  gradually  loosened. 
He  had  resigned  from  the  University,  discord  reigned 
at  the  Odessa  Bacteriological  Institute,  conditions  of 
life  in  Russia  were  very  unfavourable  to  scientific 
activity ;  in  a  word,  "  obstacles  from  above,  from 
below,  and  from  all  sides," — as  MetchnikofE  expressed 
it, — gradually  led  to  his  resolution  to  leave  his  native 
country. 


CHAPTER  XXI 

Hygiene  Congress  in  Vienna — Wiesbaden — Munich — Paris  and  Pasteur 
— Berlin  and  Koch — Failure  of  anthrax  vaccination  of  sheep — 
Decision  to  leave  Russia. 

IN  1887  we  went  to  Vienna,  where  a  Congress  of 
Hygienists  was  held,  in  which,  for  the  first  time, 
bacteriologists  took  part.  Metchnikofi  thus  had  the 
opportunity  of  becoming  acquainted  with  many  of 
them  and  to  make  inquiries  concerning  bacteriological 
laboratories.  Professor  Hueppe,  of  Wiesbaden,  very 
kindly  invited  him  to  come  to  work  in  his  own.  The 
idea  pleased  Metchnikoff,  who  thought  that  a  peaceful 
little  University  town  would  be  very  favourable  to 
his  work.  But  he  found  that  his  situation  would  be 
very  difficult  at  Wiesbaden  on  account  of  the  lack  of 
harmony  between  the  different  laboratories  in  the 
town ;  he  therefore  gave  up  the  project  which  had 
seemed  to  him  so  tempting. 

By  this  time  many  objections  had  been  raised 
against  the  phagocyte  theory,  and,  Emmerich  having 
attacked  him  very  violently,  Metchnikofi  went  to 
Munich  to  have  an  explanation  with  him.  This  gave 
him  the  opportunity  of  realising  that  Munich,  like 
Wiesbaden,  was  not  a  place  where  he  would  care  to 
settle. 

He  had  a  great  desire  to  know  Pasteur  and  his 
collaborators,  who  had  just  been  playing  such  an 

131 


132         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

important  scientific  part,  and,  finding  ourselves  within 
easy  reach  of  Paris,  we  repaired  thither,  without  the 
slightest  idea  of  settling  there.  This  is  how  Metchni- 
koff himself  described  his  first  interview  with  Pasteur  : 

On  arriving  at  the  laboratory  destined  for  the  antirabic 
vaccinations,  I  saw  an  old  man,  rather  undersized,  with  a 
left  hemiplegia,  very  piercing  grey  eyes,  a  short  beard 
and  moustache  and  slightly  grey  hair,  covered  by  a  black 
skull-cap.  His  pale  and  sickly  complexion  and  tired  look 
betokened  a  man  who  was  not  likely  to  live  many  more  years. 
He  received  me  very  kindly,  and  immediately  spoke  to  me  of 
the  question  which  interested  me  most,  the  struggle  of  the 
organism  against  microbes. 

"  I  at  once  placed  myself  on  your  side,"  he  told  me,  "  for  I 
have  for  many  years  been  struck  by  the  struggle  between 
the  divers  micro-organisms  which  I  have  had  occasion  to 
observe.  I  believe  you  are  on  the  right  road." 

Pasteur  at  that  time  was  chiefly  occupied  with 
antirabic  vaccinations  and  with  the  building  of  a 
new  Institute  in  the  rue  Dutot.  Seeing  the  vast 
dimensions  of  the  edifice  and  learning  that  the 
scientific  staff  was  not  large,  Metchnikoff  asked 
Pasteur  if  he  might  hope  to  work  in  one  of  the  labora- 
tories in  an  honorary  capacity.  Pasteur  not  only 
acceded  to  this  request  but  offered  him  a  whole 
laboratory.  He  was  most  kind,  invited  us  to  his 
home  and  introduced  Metchnikoff  to  his  collaborators, 
who  produced  an  excellent  impression  on  my  husband. 

Though  all  this  made  him  incline  more  and  more 
towards  the  Pasteur  Institute,  he  still  dreaded  life 
in  a  large  and  noisy  city,  thinking  that  a  peaceful 
little  University  town  would  be  more  favourable  to 
his  work.  Therefore,  before  making  a  final  decision, 
he  desired  to  visit  a  few  more  bacteriological  labora- 
tories. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          133 

On  our  way  back  we  passed  through  Berlin,  where 
Metchnikoff  wished  to  see  Professor  Koch  and  to 
show  him  some  interesting  specimens  of  phagocytosis. 
The  great  savant  received  him  very  coldly.  For  a 
long  time,  while  examining  specimens  of  the  spleen  in 
relapsing  fever,  he  refused  to  recognise  in  them  an 
example  of  phagocytosis.  Though  he  was  at  last 
obliged  to  bow  to  evidence,  he  yet  remained  unfavour- 
able to  the  phagocyte  theory,  and  all  his  assistants 
followed  his  example.  MetchnikoS  was  much  sur- 
prised and  grieved  by  this  hostility  towards  his 
ideas,  notwithstanding  that  they  were  based  on  well- 
established  facts.  We  hastened  to  leave  Berlin. 

Many  years  later,  when  phagocytosis  was  generally 
admitted,  even  in  Germany,  Professor  Koch  and  many 
other  German  scientists  welcomed  Metchnikofl  very 
kindly,  which  somewhat  counterbalanced  the  un- 
pleasantness of  early  memories.  But,  at  that  time, 
the  contrast  between  our  impression  of  Paris  and  of 
Germany  was  so  great  that  all  hesitation  was  at  an 
end  :  the  choice  was  made. 

On  returning  to  Odessa,  Metchnikofi  began  to 
prepare  his  resignation  and  his  departure.  Yet  he 
still  had  time  to  make  some  researches  on  phago- 
cytosis in  tuberculosis,  in  reply  to  the  objections 
which  rained  upon  his  theory. 

In  the  spring,  he  handed  over  the  direction  of  the 
Institute  to  Dr.  Gamaleia  and  took  leave  ;  we  went 
to  the  country  for  a  while  before  our  final  departure. 
During  that  time,  Drs.  Gamaleia  and  Bardach  were 
majdng  anthrax  vaccinations  on  a  large  scale  in  a 
vast  private  property  in  the  province  of  Kherson. 
When  we  were  settled  in  our  country  home,  Metch- 
nikoff  received  a  telegram  announcing  that  the  first 


134         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

anthrax  vaccine  had  killed  many  thousand  sheep. 
Though,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  his  personal  responsibility 
was  not  involved,  the  blow  was  a  terrible  one;  he 
hastened  back  to  Odessa  to  elucidate  the  cause  of 
the  catastrophe.  But  it  remained  obscure.  .  .  . 

This  painful  episode  was  the  last  drop  which  made 
the  cup  brim  over ;  it  strengthened  Metchnikoff  in 
his  resolve  to  leave  Russia. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

The  Pasteur  Institute — Dreams  realised — Metchnikoff  at  fifty — Growing 
optimism — Attenuated  sensitiveness — The  Sevres  villa — Daily 
routine. 

HAVING  decided  to  settle  in  France,  we  hastened  to 
make  ourselves  acquainted  with  contemporary  French 
literature,  thinking  to  find  in  it  a  reflection  of  the 
soul  and  manners  of  the  nation.  But  the  realistic 
literature  of  the  time,  in  spite  of  the  great  artistic 
worth  of  many  of  the  authors,  gave  us  an  erroneous 
idea  of  life  in  France,  of  which  it  represented  but  one 
of  many  aspects.  It  was  therefore  with  apprehension 
that  we  asked  ourselves  if  we  should  ever  be  able  to 
adapt  ourselves  to  the  new  conditions,  and  whether 
our  isolation  would  not  be  great. 

We  arrived  in  Paris  on  the  15th  of  October  1888, 
and  we  lodged  at  a  small  hotel  in  the  Latin  quarter, 
not  far  from  the  rue  d'Ulm  where  the  old  Pasteur 
Institute  stood,  the  new  one  not  being  completed. 
There  was  but  little  room  in  the  laboratory,  and 
Metchnikoff  felt  rather  uneasy,  fearing  that  he  was 
in  the  way.  But  the  new  Institute  soon  was  suffi- 
ciently advanced  for  him  to  settle  there. 

He  was  given  two  rooms  on  the  second  floor  ;  I 
served  as  his  assistant ;  he  was  perfectly  happy  at 
being  at  last  able  to  give  himself  up  in  peace  to  his 
work.  Soon,  young  physicians  came  to  work  under 

135 


136         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

his  direction.  Their  number  having  increased,  he 
was  given  a  whole  floor  in  which  to  instal  them, 
two  rooms  on  that  floor  being  reserved  for  his  own 
use.  He  occupied  these  rooms  until  the  end  of  his 
life. 

His  dreams  were  at  last  realised.  This  is  from 
a  narration  of  the  causes  which  led  to  his  departure 
from  Russia,  in  his  own  words  : 

Thus  it  was  in  Paris  that  I  succeeded  at  last  in  practising 
pure  Science  apart  from  all  politics  or  any  public  function. 
That  dream  could  not  have  been  realised  in  Eussia  because 
of  obstacles  from  above,  from  below,  and  from  all  sides.  One 
might  think  that  the  hour  of  science  in  Russia  has  not  yet 
struck.  I  do  not  believe  that.  I  think,  on  the  contrary, 
that  scientific  work  is  indispensable  to  Russia,  and  I  wish  from 
my  heart  that  future  conditions  may  become  more  favour- 
able than  in  the  time  of  which  I  have  spoken  in  the  above 
lines. 

Soon  he  was  able  to  appreciate  the  great  French 
qualities :  humanitarian  manners,  tolerance,  and  gentle- 
ness, real  freedom  of  thought,  loyal  and  courteous 
intercourse,  all  of  which  made  life  easy  and  agreeable. 
And  most  precious  of  all  were  the  true  friendships 
which  he  contracted  with  his  colleagues  and  his 
pupils.  Indeed  the  Institut  Pasteur  and  France 
became  for  him  a  second  Motherland,  and  when  in 
later  years  he  was  invited  to  other  countries  with 
more  liberal  conditions,  he  habitually  replied  that 
only  for  one  place  would  he  leave  the  Pasteur  Institute, 
"  the  neighbouring  cemetery  of  Montparnasse." 

However,  after  his  death,  the  Pasteur  Institute 
which  he  had  so  loved  continued  to  give  him  hos- 
pitality and  harboured  his  ashes.  .  .  . 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          137 

Pasteur  himself  ever  was  most  kind  and  helpful 
to  Metchnikofi.  During  the  first  years,  when  his 
health  still  allowed  it,  he  used  often  to  come  to  the 
laboratory,  questioning  Metchnikofi:  on  his  researches 
with  much  interest  and  always  warmly  encouraging 
him.  He  even  attended  assiduously  his  course  of 
lectures  on  inflammation.  After  his  state  of  health 
no  longer  allowed  him  to  go  out,  MetchnikofE  used 
to  visit  him  every  day,  and  tried  to  cheer  him  by 
talking  to  him  of  current  researches. 

MM.  Duclaux  and  Roux  became  his  closest  friends ; 
they  were  at  first  brought  together  by  scientific 
interests  and  by  questions  concerning  the  Institute  ; 
but,  gradually,  personal  sympathy  grew  up  between 
them,  binding  them  by  that  solid  bond  which  is  made 
up  of  daily  occurrences,  inducing  respect,  confidence, 
and  affection.  Moreover,  Metchnikoff  felt  the  deepest 
gratitude  towards  Pasteur  and  his  collaborators,  who 
had  given  him  the  possibility  of  working  in  so  favour- 
able an  atmosphere. 

From  the  very  first,  Pasteur  sympathised  with  the 
phagocyte  theory  ;  the  other  members  of  the  Institute 
thought  it  too  biological,  almost  vitalistic.  But  when 
they  had  made  themselves  thoroughly  cognisant  with 
it,  they  also  adopted  it.  Thus,  having  found  in  the 
Pasteur  Institute  not  only  favourable  working  condi- 
tions but  also  moral  support,  Metchnikofi:  became 
deeply  attached  to  it,  and  the  interests  of  "  the  House  " 
became  his. 

In  1915,  on  the  occasion  of  MetchnikofTs  seventieth 
anniversary,  M.  Roux,  in  a  Jubilee  speech,  gave  of 
him  and  of  his  work  the  following  appreciation  which 
describes,  better  than  anything  I  could  say,  what  his 
part  was  in  the  Pasteur  Institute  : 


138         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

In  Paris  as  in  Petrograd,  as  in  Odessa,  you  have  become 
a  leader  of  thought,  and  you  have  kindled  in  this  Institute  a 
scientific  focus  which  has  radiated  afar. 

Your  laboratory  is  more  alive  than  any  in  the  house  ; 
workers  come  to  it  in  crowds.  There,  the  bacteriological 
events  of  the  day  are  discussed,  interesting  preparations 
examined,  ideas  sought  for  that  may  help  an  experimenter 
to  solve  difficulties  in  which  he  has  become  involved.  It  is 
to  you  that  one  comes  to  ask  for  a  control  experiment  on  a 
newly  observed  fact,  for  a  criticism  of  a  discovery  that  does 
not  always  survive  the  test. 

Moreover,  as  you  read  everything,  every  one  comes  to  you 
for  information,  for  an  account  of  a  newly  published  memoir 
which  there  is  no  time  to  read.  It  is  much  more  convenient 
than  to  consult  the  library  and  also  much  safer,  for  errors  of 
translation  and  interpretation  are  avoided. 

Your  erudition  is  so  vast  and  so  accurate  that  it  is  made 
use  of  by  the  whole  house.  How  many  times  have  I  not 
availed  myself  of  it  ?  One  never  fears  to  take  advantage  of 
it,  for  no  scientific  question  ever  finds  you  indifferent.  Your 
ardour  warms  the  indolent  and  gives  confidence  to  the 
sceptical. 

You  are  an  incomparable  collaborator  as  I  know,  I  who 
have  had  the  good  fortune  of  being  associated  with  your 
researches  on  several  occasions.  Indeed,  you  did  nearly  all 
the  work  ! 

More  even  than  your  science,  your  kindliness  attracts  ; 
who  amongst  us  has  not  experienced  it  ?  I  have  had  a 
touching  proof  of  it  when,  many  times,  you  have  nursed  me 
as  if  I  were  your  own  child.  You  are  so  happy  in  doing 
good  that  you  even  feel  gratitude  towards  those  whom  you 
serve. 

This  is  such  an  intimate  gathering  that  I  may  be  allowed 
to  say  quite  openly  that  it  is  so  painful  to  you  not  to  give 
that  you  prefer  being  exploited  rather  than  close  your  hand. 

The  Pasteur  Institute  owes  you  much  ;  you  have  brought 
to  it  the  prestige  of  your  renown,  and  by  your  work  and  that 
of  your  pupils  you  have  greatly  contributed  to  its  glory.  You 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         139 

have  given  a  noble  example  of  disinterestedness  by  refusing 
any  salary  in  those  years  when  the  budget  was  balanced 
with  difficulty  and  by  preferring  to  the  glorious  and  lucrative 
situations  that  were  offered  to  you  the  modest  life  of  this 
house.  Still  a  Russian  by  nationality,  you  have  become 
French  by  your  choice,  and  you  contracted  a  Franco-Russian 
alliance  with  the  Pasteur  Institute  long  before  the  diplomats 
thought  of  it. 

At  the  beginning  the  members  of  the  Pasteur 
Institute  were  few,  and  the  association  bore  a  quasi- 
family  character,  Pasteurians  often  being  compared 
with  a  monastic  order,  united  by  the  worship  of 
science.  The  progressive  growth  of  the  Institute 
inevitably  destroyed  its  character  of  intimacy,  but  it 
remained  a  precious  scientific  focus,  and  this  is  what 
Metchnikofi  said  of  it  in  1913,  apropos  of  the  twenty- 
fifth  anniversary  of  its  foundation  : 

If  we  weigh  the  for  and  against  of  the  Pasteur  Institute, 
it  is  indisputable  that  the  first  surpasses  the  second  by  a 
great  deal.  I  do  not  think  another  institution  exists  that  is 
equally  favourable  to  work.  Innumerable  proofs  have  been 
adduced  to  attest  this  in  the  twenty-five  years  that  our 
House  has  existed. 

It  was  especially  the  development  of  pure  scientific 
research  in  the  Institute  which  interested  Metchni- 
kofi ;  he  continually  considered  means  of  contributing 
towards  it ;  he  thought  it  necessary  to  attract  active 
scientific  forces  regardless  of  their  origin,  to  institute 
generous  scientific  "  scholarships,"  and  to  stimulate 
by  every  means  scientific  activity  and  spirit. 

As  the  rapid  development  of  bacteriology  necessi- 
tated having  recourse  to  chemistry,  physics,  and 
physiology,  he  considered  it  indispensable  to  organise 
collective  work  in  which  specialists  in  these  divers 
branches  should  take  part,  thus  collaborating  to  the 


140         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

solution  of  the  same  problem.  Later  he  was  able  to 
realise  this  project,  up  to  a  certain  point,  in  his  own 
laboratory,  when  studying  intestinal  flora. 

He  thought  it  would  be  useful  to  extend  this 
method,  as  far  as  possible,  to  researches  such  as  that 
on  tuberculosis  and  on  cancer,  such  researches  being 
complicated  and  protracted  and  demanding  co-ordinate 
efforts  and  an  organisation  that  should  prevent  the 
repetition  of  individual  first  steps.  A  clinic  attached 
to  the  Pasteur  Institute  and  adapted  to  scientific 
researches  seemed  to  him  indispensable. 

He  also  considered  that  the  experimental  study 
of  those  human  diseases  which  can  only  be  inoculated 
in  anthropoid  apes  should  be  carried  out  through 
the  breeding  of  those  animals  in  the  colonies,  for 
infantile  diseases  demand  very  young  apes  as  subjects 
for  experiments,  and  they  cannot  be  brought  to  Europe 
in  sufficient  numbers  without  great  loss.  A  mission 
of  workers  might  carry  out  experiments  on  the  spot. 

He  thought  the  popularisation  of  science  a  very 
useful  thing  and  wished  the  Pasteur  Institute  to 
participate  in  it  by  appropriate  courses  of  public 
lectures.  He  attached  great  importance  to  the  pene- 
tration into  ordinary  life  of  results  acquired  by  science, 
for  the  struggle  against  disease  consists  chiefly  in 
prophylactic  and  hygienic  measures  which  can  only 
be  applied  by  a  well-informed  public.  For  that 
reason  he  was  always  willing  to  be  interviewed  on 
scientific  questions  by  journalists  and,  indeed,  by  any 
one,  however  ignorant.  In  order  to  instruct  the  public 
he  often  wrote  popular  articles  on  questions  of  hygiene 
and  medicine. 

Science  in  general  never  was  a  dead  letter  for  him  ; 
'his  most  abstract  conceptions  were  always  narrowly 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          141 

bound  to  life  ;  he  saw  one  through  the  other  and 
considered  that  they  should  serve  each  other. 

Apart  from  scientific  researches,  he  took  part  in  the 
courses  given  at  the  Pasteur  Institute.  He  prepared 
his  lectures  with  infinite  care,  and,  in  spite  of  his  long 
experience,  he  never  could  give  them  without  some 
nervousness,  especially  during  the  last  years  of  his 
life.  He  used  even  to  write  down  the  first  sentences 
and  to  read  them  out  in  order  to  give  himself  time  to 
recover ;  but  very  soon  his  self-control  would  return, 
and  he  would  proceed  with  animation  and  lucidity  ; 
his  lectures  were  living  and  suggestive. 

I  have  mentioned  above  Roux's  masterly  appreci- 
ation of  his  influence  at  the  Pasteur  Institute.  The 
following  was  written  to  me,  a  year  after  MetchnikofE's 
death,  by  one  of  his  closest  disciples  and  collaborators, 
and  describes  in  a  vivid  manner  the  deep  feelings 
with  which  he  inspired  his  pupils : 

"  You  say  that  you  love  to  think  that  he  continues  to  live 
in  others.  Could  it  have  been  otherwise  ?  A  character  as 
powerful  as  his  is  capable  of  influencing  and  illuminating  the 
life,  not  of  one  individual,  but  of  a  whole  generation.  I  look 
upon  it  as  the  greatest  good  fortune  of  my  life  that  I  was 
able  to  spend  my  best  years  in  his  orbit  and  to  impregnate 
my  mind  with  his  spirit,  not  his  scientific  spirit,  but  that 
which  he  manifested  in  facing  hie  and  humanity. 

"  This  bond  has  become  so  much  part  of  myself  that  my  first 
impulse  is  always  to  act  in  the  way  he  would  have  approved. 
I  even  feel  the  need  to  share  with  others  what  I  received  from 
him.  I  do  not  know  whether  it  will  be  given  to  me  to  solve 
certain  problems  posed  by  him,  but  I  have  the  conviction 
that  his  spirit,  in  its  purity,  will  be  preserved  among  us.  He 
will  ever  live  in  those  who  worked  by  his  side,  and  in  those 
who  will  come  to  work  in  his  laboratory.  It  cannot  be 
otherwise." 


142         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Metchnikoff  on  his  part  never  remained  indifferent 
to  his  pupils.  His  solicitude  towards  them  was  warm, 
sometimes  paternal,  always  ready  and  active.  Many 
of  his  pupils  remained  his  friends  and  collaborators 
for  years  afterwards.  His  fiery  and  exclusive  tem- 
perament, however,  made  him  take  up  a  very  different 
attitude  in  exceptional  cases,  when  he  found  himself 
in  front  of  one  who  persisted  in  a  path  which  Metchni- 
koff  himself  considered  the  wrong  path,  or  before  an 
action  which  he  thought  disloyal  or  work  done  with- 
out conscience.  Then  he  became  beside  himself,  and 
positively  dangerous  to  those  who  had  exposed  them- 
selves to  the  paroxysm  of  his  indignation. 

Fortunately  such  cases  were  rare  ;  as  a  general 
rule,  the  atmosphere  of  his  laboratory  was  impregnated 
with  scientific  spirit  and  ardour  ;  all  forces  in  it  con- 
verged towards  the  same  goal,  being  bound  together 
by  a  community  of  aspirations  and  activity  of  which 
he  was  the  soul. 

The  first  period  of  his  life  in  France  was  taken  up 
by  the  strengthening  and  development  of  the  phago- 
cyte theory  and  by  an  eager  struggle  in  its  defence. 
He  displayed  in  it  his  full  energy  as  a  scientist  and 
a  fighter,  and  this  was  perhaps  the  most  agitated, 
the  most  tense  period  of  his  life. 

When  at  last  his  theory  was  securely  established 
and  began  to  be  accepted,  he  continued  his  researches 
with  the  same  passionate  ardour  but  in  an  atmosphere 
of  peace.  It  was  joy  and  bliss  to  him  to  be  able  to 
work  apart  from  other  preoccupations,  and  the  years 
of  his  life  between  fifty  and  sixty  were  the  happiest 
he  ever  had. 

The  state  of  his  soul  and  his  ideas  had  considerably 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          143 

evolved  in  the  course  of  years  ;  the  great  moral  and 
physical  sensitiveness  which  had  so  often  made  him 
miserable  in  his  youth  had  decreased  and  he  had 
become  much  less  impulsive.  Unpleasant  sensations 
no  longer  caused  him  so  much  suffering  ;  he  could 
bear  the  mewing  of  a  cat  or  the  barking  of  a  dog  ; 
personal  vexations  no  longer  made  him  take  such  a 
horror  of  life  as  to  wish  to  be  rid  of  it :  he  now  merely 
tried  to  conquer  them. 

At  first  this  change  operated  less  upon  his  ideas 
than  upon  his  sensations  and  sentiments.  Accustomed 
as  he  was  to  analyse  his  emotions,  he  realised  the 
development  within  himself  of  a  new  sense  of  appre- 
ciation ;  less  sensitive  now  to  extreme  impressions, 
he  had  become  more  so  to  ordinary  ones.  For 
instance,  though  less  enchanted  by  music,  and  less 
irritated  by  discordant  noises,  he  enjoyed  absolute 
calm  more  fully.  Now  indifferent  to  rich  food,  which 
he  formerly  used  to  enjoy,  he  appreciated  simple  fare, 
bread  and  pure  water.  He  did  not  seek  for  picturesque 
sites  but  took  infinite  pleasure  in  watching  the  growth 
of  grass  or  the  bursting  of  a  bud.  The  first  halting 
steps  or  the  smile  of  an  infant  charmed  and  delighted 
him. 

Demanding  less  from  life,  he  now  appreciated  it  as 
it  was,  and  experienced  the  joy  of  mere  living.  The 
instinct,  the  sense  of  life  had  been  born  in  him.  He 
now  saw  Life  and  Nature  under  a  different  aspect 
from  that  which  they  had  borne  for  him  in  his  youth, 
for  he  had  gradually  acquired  more  balance  ;  he  had 
become  adapted. 

In  their  turn,  his  ideas  evolved  towards  a  more 
optimistic  conception  of  life.  His  reflections,  freed  from 
the  yoke  of  his  juvenile  sensitiveness,  tended  towards 


144         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

the  possibility  of  a  correction  of  the  disharmonies 
of  human  nature  through  knowledge  and  will.  This 
evolution  had  taken  years.  "  In  order  to  understand 
the  meaning  of  life,"  he  said,  "  it  is  necessary  to  live 
a  long  time,  without  which  one  finds  oneself  in  the 
position  of  a  congenitally  blind  man  before  whom 
the  beauties  of  colour  are  spread  out." 

During  the  twenty-eight  years  that  he  lived  in 
France,  nearly  all  his  time  was  devoted  to  the  labora- 
tory. Whilst  the  Institute  was  still  in  its  beginning, 
work  there  was  calm  and  collected ;  but,  as  its 
growing  renown  attracted  many  people,  this  quietude 
decreased  considerably.  Metchnikoff  felt  this,  but 
could  not  bring  himself  to  refuse  to  admit  those  who 
came  ;  he  compensated  himself  by  peaceful  Sundays 
and  holidays. 

For  a  long  time  we  inhabited  the  neighbourhood 
of  the  Institute  and  spent  the  summers  at  Sevres  ; 
in  1898  we  bought  a  small  villa  there  with  a  sum 
of  money  which  we  inherited  from  an  aunt.  In  1905 
we  settled  there  altogether,  for  Metchnikoff,  confined 
in  the  laboratory  all  day,  felt  the  need  of  fresh  air ; 
the  daily  walk  that  he  was  obliged  to  take  to  reach 
the  house  and  the  absolute  calm,  away  from  the  noise 
of  the  city,  suited  him  ;  he  even  fancied  that  the  hill 
on  which  the  house  was  built  provided  him  with  a 
wholesome  exercise  for  his  heart. 

The  return  to  Sevres,  which  he  greatly  liked,  was 
to  him  a  daily  source  of  pleasure.  I  can  see  him  now, 
hastily  coming  out  of  the  train,  his  pockets  full  of 
papers  and  brochures  which  he  read  in  the  train  and 
parcels  in  his  hands,  for  he  loved  to  bring  home  little 
presents.  A  kindly  smile  illumined  his  face  and  he, 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         145 

never  failed  to  express  the  pleasure  he  felt  at  coming 
home.  "  How  pure  the  air  is  !  How  green  the  grass  ! 
What  peace  !  You  see,  if  I  did  not  go  to  Paris  to  work 
I  should  not  be  so  alive  to  the  charm  of  Sevres  and  the 
pleasure  of  rest."  He  used  to  come  home  at  seven  and 
do  no  more  work ;  it  was  his  daily  rest.  He  then  gave 
himself  up  to  complete  relaxation,  joked,  related  the 
incidents  of  the  day,  spoke  of  his  researches,  planned 
experiments  for  the  next  day,  read  aloud  part  of  the 
evening  and  then  listened  to  music,  not  only  because 
he  liked  it,  but  also  because  he  wanted  to  "  switch 
on  to  another  line,"  i.e.  rest  his  mind  completely. 

He  was  an  incomparable  companion,  always  alive 
and  communicative,  generously  giving  out  the  trea- 
sures of  his  heart  and  his  intelligence.  He  liked  a 
simple  life  ;  all  artifice,  all  convention  displeased 
him.  He  disliked  luxury  in  his  person  to  that 
extent  that  he  never  consented  to  possess  a  gold 
watch  nor  any  object  with  no  particular  use.  His  only 
luxury  was  to  gratify  others.  He  enjoyed  peaceful 
family  life  and  a  circle  of  intimate  friends.  Yet, 
appreciating  as  he  did  all  serious  manifestations  of 
life,  he  was  glad  to  have  the  opportunity  of  meeting 
people  who  were  interesting  either  in  themselves  or  for 
the  knowledge  which  they  could  impart. 

In  Life  as  in  Science  he  found  precepts  to  help 
the  evolution  of  his  moral  and  philosophical  ideas, 
which  he  placed  in  their  turn  at  Life's  service.  If  he 
could  not  solve  a  problem,  he  at  least  pointed  out  its 
importance. 

His  attentive  penetration  of  things  in  themselves, 
coupled  with  a  creative  imagination,  was  the  force 
which  enabled  him  to  open  out  new  prospects  and 
new  paths. 

L 


146         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

On  looking  back  upon  his  own  life,  he  used  to  say 
that  the  period  spent  at  the  Pasteur  Institute  had 
been  the  happiest,  the  most  favourable  to  his  scientific 
work ;  he  therefore  remained  deeply  attached  to  it 
until  the  end  of  his  life. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

Opposition  to  the  phagocyte  theory — Scientific  controversies — Experi- 
ments in  support  of  the  phagocyte  theory — Behring  and  anti- 
toxins— The  London  Congress — Inflammation. 

As  long  as  Metchnikoff  was  but  a  zoologist,  the 
scientific  atmosphere  around  him  remained  calm  and 
serene.  But  everything  changed  suddenly  when  he 
entered  the  domain  of  pathology  with  his  theory  of 
phagocytes  and  phagocytosis. 

Here  was  the  realm  of  secular  traditions,  deeply 
rooted,  and  of  theories  generally  admitted  but  resting 
on  no  biological  basis.  Attacks  and  objections  against 
his  theories  came  following  upon  each  other  with  a 
rush,  only  to  be  compared  with  the  racing  clouds  of  a 
stormy  sky  or  the  hurrying  waves  of  a  tempestuous 
sea.  An  epic  struggle  began  for  Metchnikoff  which 
was  to  last  for  twenty-five  years,  until  the  moment 
when  the  phagocyte  theory,  his  child  now  grown 
up,  emerged  victoriously.  To  each  attack,  to  each 
objection,  he  answered  by  fresh  experiments,  fresh 
observations  annihilating  objections  ;  his  theory  was 
assuming  a  wider  and  wider  scope,  becoming  more 
solid,  more  convincing.  .  .  .  But  only  his  intimates 
knew  how  much  the  struggle  cost  him  in  vital  force, 
what  sleepless  nights,  due  to  continuous  cerebral 
tension  and  to  the  effort  to  conceive  some  new  and 
irrefragable  experiment,  what  alternations  of  hope 

147 


148         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

and  depression.  ...  In  an  ardent,  stormy  life  such 
as  this,  each  year  counted  for  many. 

As  soon  as  he  arrived  at  the  Pasteur  Institute 
he  undertook  active  researches  with  the  object  of 
developing  and  defending  the  phagocyte  theory. 

By  experiments  on  the  rouget  of  pigs  he  refuted 
the  objections  of  Emmerich,  who  affirmed  that,  in 
that  disease,  the  destruction  of  the  microbes  was  not 
due  to  phagocytes.  By  experiments  on  the  anthrax 
of  pigeons  he  answered  the  attacks  of  Baumgarten 
and  his  pupils.  To  Behring,  who  affirmed  that 
immunity  was  due  to  the  bactericidal  power  of  the 
serum,  he  replied  by  a  series  of  experiments  on  the 
anthrax  of  rats. 

By  all  these  researches  Metchnikofi  proved  that 
recovery  and  immunity  depended  on  the  absorp- 
tion and  digestion  of  living,  virulent  microbes  by 
phagocytes.  Natural  or  artificial  vaccination  by 
attenuated  microbes  allows  the  phagocytes  to  become 
gradually  accustomed  to  digest  more  virulent  ones, 
and  this  confers  immunity  upon  the  organism.  That 
phenomenon  is  comparable  to  that  by  which  we  can 
accustom  ourselves  gradually  to  doses  of  poison  which 
would  be  very  harmful  if  taken  at  the  start  (arsenic, 
opium,  nicotine,  etc.). 

Little  by  little,  the  accuracy  of  MetchnikorTs  obser- 
vations began  to  be  realised,  and,  moreover,  other 
scientists  supported  him  by  their  personal  investi- 
gations. The  part  played  by  phagocytosis  was 
becoming  more  and  more  evident  and  the  question 
was  ripening  in  France  and  in  England,  but  in  Ger- 
many it  still  met  with  great  opposition. 

At  the  Berlin  Congress  in  1890  the  theory  was 
received  very  favourably  by  Lister,  whilst  Koch 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         149 

attacked  it,  trying  to  prove  that  phagocytes  played 
no  part  in  immunity,  which,  according  to  him, 
depended  upon  the  chemical  properties  of  the  blood. 

Soon  after  that,  Behring  discovered  antitoxins, 
and  this  seemed  to  favour  the  chemical  or  humoral 
theory  of  immunity.  According  to  the  latter,  microbes 
and  their  poisons  were  rendered  harmless  by  the 
chemical  properties  of  the  blood  serum,  properties 
similar  to  those  of  disinfecting  substances. 

In  spite  of  his  firm  conviction  of  the  solidity  of  the 
phagocyte  theory,  this  discovery  was  a  shock  to 
Metchnikoff,  for  it  was  in  apparent  contradiction  with 
the  cellular  theory  of  immunity.  He  hastened  to 
undertake  a  series  of  researches ;  his  overflowing 
eagerness  infected  his  whole  circle,  every  one  taking 
the  warmest  interest  in  the  progress  of  his  experi- 
ments. 

This  was  just  as  preparations  were  being  made  to 
take  part  in  the  London  Congress,  where  the  question 
of  immunity  was  to  be  debated  and  had  indeed  been 
placed  at  the  head  of  the  programme.  Many  papers 
were  being  prepared,  and  a  veritable  tourney  of 
opinions  was  to  take  place  at  this  Congress. 

Metchnikoff  had  already  been  to  England  once, 
in  the  spring  of  1891,  on  the  occasion  of  his  reception 
as  an  Honorary  Doctor  by  the  University  of  Cam- 
bridge. This  gave  him  the  opportunity  of  making 
closer  acquaintance  with  the  English,  who  inspired 
him  with  great  sympathy  ;  years  only  increased  this 
feeling.  He  appreciated  the  originality  of  their 
earnest  and  generalising  spirit,  their  loyalty  and 
energy  ;  he  was  grateful  to  them  for  the  attentive 
and  favourable  attitude  with  which  his  scientific 
work  and  himself  had  been  received. 


150         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

He  was  therefore  delighted  that  this  Congress, 
which  was  to  be  the  scene  of  his  final  struggle  against 
his  contradictors,  should  take  place  in  England  and 
not  in  Germany,  a  country  hostile  to  his  ideas. 

In  view  of  the  importance  of  the  coming  debate, 
a  series  of  fresh  experiments  was  made.  This  time 
Metchnikoff  undertook  them  not  only  in  person,  but 
also  in  collaboration  with  M.  Roux  and  with  some 
students.  The  whole  laboratory  was  in  a  state  of 
effervescence. 

The  principal  papers  to  be  read  at  the  Congress 
on  the  question  of  immunity  were  those  of  Messrs. 
Roux  and  Biichner,  the  first  entirely  in  favour  of  the 
phagocyte  theory  and  the  second  supporting  the 
humoral  theory. 

Metchnikoff  read  an  epitome  of  his  researches  and 
of  his  answers  to  attacks  on  his  theory.  Towards  the 
end  of  the  Congress  the  latter  had  visibly  acquired 
the  suffrage  of  numerous  scientists.  Roux  wrote  to 
me  from  London  concerning  my  husband's  paper  : 

Metchnikoff  is  busy  showing  his  preparations  and,  besides, 
he  would  not  tell  you  how  great  is  his  triumph.  He  spoke 
with  such  passion  that  he  carried  everybody  with  him.  I 
believe  that,  this  evening,  the  phagocyte  theory  is  the  richer 
by  many  friends. 

Thus  the  researches  made  in  recent  years  and  the 
results  of  the  London  Congress  allowed  us  to  consider 
the  phagocyte  theory  of  immunity  as  being  solidly 
established. 

Yet,  Behring's  discovery  of  antitoxins  still  hung 
over  it  like  a  sword  of  Damocles  ;  it  was  imperative 
that  the  respective  parts  played  by  antitoxins  and 
by  phagocytes  should  be  elucidated.  With  that 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         151 

object  in  view,  Metchnikofi  undertook  new  researches 
and  succeeded  in  ascertaining  once  for  all  the  narrow 
link  between  immunity  and  the  function  of  the 
phagocytes  which  probably  elaborate  the  antitoxins 
as  a  product  of  their  digestion  of  vaccinal  toxins.  He 
drew  this  conclusion  from  the  fact  that,  in  a  rabbit 
vaccinated  against  hog-cholera,  the  exudate  devoid 
of  phagocytes  l  is  neither  bactericidal,  nor  antitoxic, 
nor  attenuating,  while  it  is  so  if  it  contains  phagocytes. 
Therefore  a  relation  of  causality  exists  between  cells 
and  the  acquired  properties  of  humors.  And  the 
resistance  of  the  animal  is  in  visible  correlation  with 
the  degree  of  phagocytosis  which  is  manifested  by  it. 

These  results  having  been  established,  it  seemed 
as  if  the  last  rampart  of  the  humoral  theory  had  been 
taken  by  storm. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  persistent  and  bitter  opposi- 
tion of  physicians  to  the  phagocyte  theory  made  a 
great  impression  on  Metchnikofi,  and,  while  stimu- 
lating his  energy  in  defence  of  his  ideas,  it  maintained 
him  in  a  state  of  nervous  excitement  and  even 
depressed  him. 

He  asked  himself  why  this  obstinate  opposition 
to  a  doctrine  based  on  well-established  facts,  easily 
tested  and  observed  throughout  the  whole  animal 
kingdom  ?  To  him,  a  naturalist,  it  seemed  clear  and 
simple  and  all  the  more  admissible  that  it  was  con- 
firmed by  the  generality  of  its  application  to  all 
living  beings. 

But,  he  thought,  perhaps  the  real  cause  of  the 
attitude  of  the  contradictors  lies  in  the  very  fact 
that  medical  science  only  concerns  itself  with  the 
pathological  phenomena  of  higher  animals,  leaving 

1  Aqueous  humor,  the  exudate  of  aseptic  redemata. 


152         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

their  evolution  entirely  out  of  account,  as  well  as 
their  starting-point  in  lower  animals — whilst  it  is 
the  very  simplicity  of  the  latter  which  allows  us  to 
penetrate  to  the  origin  of  the  phenomena. 

Perhaps  a  general  plan  of  the  whole,  in  the  shape 
of  a  comparative  study,  embracing  the  whole  animal 
scale,  would  throw  light  over  the  generality  of  phago- 
cytic  phenomena  and  would  make  their  continuity 
understood  through  normal  and  pathological  biology. 
He  determined  to  make  this  effort.  In  order  to  place 
in  a  fresh  light  the  biological  evolution  of  phagocytosis 
phenomena  in  disease,  he  chose  one  of  the  principal 
manifestations  of  pathological  phagocytosis,  inflam- 
mation, and,  in  1891,  gave  a  series  of  lectures  on  this 
subject  which  he  afterwards  published  in  a  volume. 
According  to  his  usual  method,  he  began  by  the 
most  primitive  beings,  taking  as  a  starting-point  the 
lower  organisms  which  do  not  yet  possess  differentiated 
functions,  and  whose  normal  digestion  is,  if  necessary, 
used  as  a  means  of  defence  against  noxious  agents. 
Then,  by  a  comparative  study  in  every  grade  of 
the  animal  kingdom,  he  proved  that  the  same  mode 
of  struggle  and  defence  persists  in  the  mesodermic 
cells,  the  phagocytes  in  all  animals  in  general. 
In  all  of  them,  thanks  to  a  special  sensitiveness, 
Chimiotaxis,  phagocytes  move  towards  the  intruder, 
to  englobe  it  and  digest  it  if  they  can.  This  reaction 
for  defence  by  the  organism  takes  place  in  beings 
endowed  with  a  vascular  system  by  the  migration 
of  the  blood-phagocytes  which  traverse  the  walls  of 
the  blood-vessels  in  order  to  betake  themselves  to 
the  invaded  point. 

In  higher  animals,  all  the  symptoms  which  accom- 
pany this  phenomenon  of  defence  and  which  constitute 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          153 

the  classical  picture  of  inflammation  (a  heightened 
temperature,  pain,  redness,  tumefaction)  are  due  to 
the  complexity  of  the  organism  ;  but  the  essence,  the 
primum  movens  of  inflammation,  with  them  also,  is 
a  digestive  action  of  the  phagocytes  upon  the  noxious 
agent,  therefore  a  salutary  reaction  of  the  organism, 
essentially  similar  to  the  normal  digestion  of  inferior 
beings.  Metchnikofi  adduced  numerous  examples 
giving  evidence  of  the  genetic  link  which  exists 
between  inflammation  and  normal  intracellular 
digestion,  and  while  establishing  the  evolution  of 
the  former  on  biological  and  experimental  bases,  he 
showed  at  the  same  time  the  close  connection  which 
binds  normal  biology  and  pathological  biology. 

This  series  of  lectures  formed  a  volume  which 
appeared  in  1892  under  the  title  of  Legons  sur  la 
pathologic  comparee  de  V inflammation,  a  book  which 
contributed  to  the  acceptation  of  the  phagocyte 
theory  and  which  showed  the  importance  of  Natural 
History  applied  to  Medicine. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 

Cholera — Experiments  on  himself  and  others — Illness  of  M.  Jupille — 
Death  of  an  epileptic  subject — Insufficient  results. 

THE  acute  period  of  the  struggle  in  defence  of  the 
phagocyte  theory  now  seemed  to  have  come  to  an 
end  and  MetchnikofE  turned  his  thoughts  towards  a 
new  field  of  ideas. 

Having  elucidated  the  essence  of  inflammation, 
he  wished  to  study  the  origin  of  another  pathological 
symptom,  i.e.  the  rise  in  temperature  which  consti- 
tutes a  feverish  condition.  To  that  end  he  undertook  a 
succession  of  experiments  on  cold-blooded  animals  ;  he 
injected  microbes  into  crocodiles  and  serpents,  hoping 
thus  to  provoke  a  rise  in  their  temperature.  But 
those  experiments  did  not  give  the  results  expected. 

In  the  meanwhile  (1892)  cholera  had  made  its 
appearance  in  France  ;  the  specificity  of  the  cholera 
vibrio  was  not  finally  established  at  that  time.  The 
observations  made  by  Pettenkoffer  on  the  immunity 
of  certain  regions,  despite  the  presence  of  the  cholera 
vibrio  in  the  water,  and  the  experiments  made  upon 
himself  by  that  scientist,  seemed  to  plead  against  the 
specificity  of  the  cholera  vibrio  ;  but  other  facts  spoke 
in  its  favour.  Desirous  of  solving  this  question, 
MetchnikofE  went  to  a  cholera  centre  in  Brittany 
in  order  to  fetch  the  necessary  materials.  Having 
done  so,  he  attempted  to  produce  cholera  in  divers 
kinds  of  animals,  but  without  success. 

154 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         155 

As  he  failed  to  solve  the  problem  of  the  specificity 
of  the  cholera  vibrio  on  animals,  he  resolved  to  experi- 
ment upon  himself  and  consumed  a  culture  of  cholera 
vibriones.  He  did  not  contract  cholera,  which  made 
him  doubt  the  specificity  of  the  vibrio,  and  therefore 
he  consented  to  repeat  the  experiment  on  one  of  his 
workers  (M.  Latapie)  who  offered  to  submit  to  it : 
the  result  was  the  same.  He  then  did  not  hesitate 
to  accept  the  offer  of  a  second  volunteer  (M.  Jupille). 
The  preceding  results  having  led  him  to  suppose  that 
the  cholera  vibrio  became  attenuated  in  vitro  and 
might  perhaps  serve  as  a  vaccine  against  cholera,  he 
gave  a  culture  of  long  standing  to  the  young  volunteer. 

To  his  astonishment  and  despair,  Jupille  began 
to  manifest  the  typical  symptoms  of  cholera,  and  a 
doctor  who  was  particularly  conversant  with  the 
clinical  chart  of  the  disease  declared  the  case  a 
severe  one  because  of  the  nervous  symptoms  which 
accompanied  it. 

Metchnikoff  was  in  mortal  anxiety,  and  even  said 
to  himself  that  he  could  not  survive  a  fatal  issue. 
Fortunately  the  patient  recovered,  and  this  terrifying 
experiment  proved  indisputably  the  specificity  of  the 
cholera  vibrio.  Yet  the  irregularity  of  its  action 
showed  that  in  certain  cases  conditions  existed  which 
prevented  the  inception  of  the  disease,  and  Metchni- 
koff supposed  that  this  might  be  due  to  the  action  of 
the  different  intestinal  micro-organisms. 

In  order  to  simplify  the  question,  he  began  by 
making  experiments  outside  the  organism.  He  sowed 
the  cholera  vibrio  with  divers  other  microbes  and 
saw  that  some  of  them  facilitated  its  culture  whilst 
others  prevented  it.  Similar  experiments  within  the 
organism  of  animals  gave  no  conclusive  results  ;  the 


156         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

simultaneous  ingestion  of  the  cholera  vibrio  and  of 
favourable  microbes  did  not  induce  cholera. 

The  flora  of  the  intestines,  complex  as  it  is,  probably 
played  a  part  on  which  it  was  difficult  to  throw  any 
light.  Yet  Metchnikoff  did  not  give  up  the  idea  of 
producing  a  vaccine  against  this  disease  with  attenu- 
ated microbes,  or,  if  not,  to  prevent  its  inception  by 
preventive  microbes.  His  thesis  was  strengthened 
when  one  of  his  pupils,  Dr.  Sanarelli,  discovered  a 
series  of  choleriform  bacilli  in  the  absence  of  any 
cholera  epidemic,  one  of  those  microbes  being  found 
at  Versailles,  a  town  which  had  remained  immune 
during  every  cholera  epidemic. 

Metchnikofi  thought  that  this  microbe,  or  some 
choleriform  bacillus,  similar  though  not  specific,  prob- 
ably served  as  a  natural  vaccine  against  cholera  in  those 
localities  which  were  spared  by  the  epidemic  though 
the  cholera  vibrio  was  brought  there.  This  was  a 
question  that  could  only  be  solved  by  experiment. 

At  the  time  when  he  had  himself  absorbed  a 
cholera  culture,  Metchnikofi  admitted  the  risk  of 
catching  the  disease  ;  still,  his  eagerness  to  solve  the 
problem  had  silenced  in  him  all  other  considerations 
and  feelings  opposed  to  his  irresistible  desire  to  attempt 
the  experiment.  This  "  psychosis,"  as  he  himself 
called  it  later,  recurred  now,  in  spite  of  all  the  emotions 
he  had  gone  through  on  the  previous  occasion,  and  he 
decided  once  again  to  experiment  on  man.  It  is  true 
that  he  now  only  had  to  deal  with  choleriform  microbes 
from  Versailles  which  he  believed  to  be  quite  harm- 
less as  they  came  from  the  water  of  a  locality  free 
from  cholera.  He  therefore  ingested  some  of  the 
Versailles  choleriform  vibriones  and  gave  some  to 
several  other  people.  Contrary  to  expectation,  one 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          157 

of  the  latter,  an  incurable  epileptic,  showed  some 
symptoms  of  cholera,  but  recovered.  But  as,  a 
short  time  later,  this  patient  died  from  a  cause 
which  remained  obscure,  Metchnikofi  thought  that 
possibly  the  experiment  might  have  had  something 
to  do  with  it,  and  finally  resolved  to  perform  no 
other  experiments  on  human  beings. 

How  could  that  unforeseen  result  be  explained  ? 
Metchnikofi  supposed  that  the  intestine  of  the  subject 
contained  favourable  microbes  which  had  exalted  the 
virulence  of  the  bacillus,  in  itself  weak  and  innocuous. 
If  it  were  so,  then  certain  intestinal  microbes  would 
influence  the  inception  of  diseases  and  the  action  of 
the  micro-organisms  would  vary  according  to  the 
society  in  which  they  found  themselves.  As  such 
problems  could  only  be  solved  through  experiment, 
he  again  energetically  sought  for  a  means  of  con- 
ferring cholera  upon  animals.  After  many  failures 
and  difficulties,  it  occurred  to  him  to  try  new-born 
animals  whose  intestinal  flora,  not  yet  developed, 
could  not  interfere  with  the  swarming  of  the  ingested 
bacilli.  He  chose  young  suckling  rabbits  for  his 
experiments  and,  with  the  aid  of  favourable  microbes, 
he  succeeded  at  last  in  giving  them  characteristic 
cholera,  through  ingestion  ;  thus  it  became  possible 
to  study  intestinal  cholera  on  these  animals. 

However,  numerous  researches  on  the  prevention 
of  cholera  by  means  of  divers  microbes  gave  no  results 
sufficiently  conclusive  to  permit  their  application 
to  human  beings.  The  problem  was  rendered  ex- 
tremely complicated  and  difficult  by  the  many  and 
varied  influences  of  numerous  intestinal  microbes  and 
the  inconstancy  of  microbian  species  in  the  same 
individual. 


CHAPTER  XXV 

Pfeiffer's  experiments,  1895 — The  Buda-Pest  Congress — Extracellular 
destruction  of  microbes — Reaction  of  the  organism  against  toxins 
— Dr.  Besredka's  researches — Macrophages — The  Moscow  Con- 
gress, 1897 — Bordet's  experiments. 

METCHNIKOFF  had  scarcely  recovered  from  all  the 
emotions  caused  by  his  experiments  on  cholera,  which 
he  was  still  studying,  when,  in  1894,  a  work  appeared 
by  a  well-known  German  scientist,  Pfeiffer,  bringing 
out  new  facts  in  favour  of  the  extracellular  destruc- 
tion of  microbes. 

Whilst  studying  the  influence  of  the  blood  serum 
within  the  organism  and  not  outside  it  as  his  pre- 
decessors had  done,  he  had  found  that  cholera 
vibriones,  injected  into  the  peritoneum  of  a  guinea- 
pig  vaccinated  against  cholera,  were  nearly  all  killed 
in  a  few  minutes  and  that  they  then  presented  the 
form  of  motionless  granules  in  the  peritoneal  liquid. 
This  granular  degenescence,  said  Pfeiffer,  took  place 
apart  from  the  phagocytes  and  therefore  without 
their  intervention.  Metchnikoff  repeated  the  experi- 
ment at  once  and  ascertained  that  it  was  perfectly 
accurate. 

The  complexity  of  biological  phenomena  being 
very  great,  he  fully  admitted  the  possibility  of  other 
means  of  defence  in  the  organism  besides  that  of 
the  phagocytic  reaction.  However,  this  new  fact 
disagreed  so  much  with  his  own  observation,  and 

158 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          159 

seemed  so  isolated,  that  Metchnikofi  supposed  an 
error  of  interpretation  must  have  been  made  and 
tried  to  throw  light  upon  it.  He  spent  sleepless 
nights  seeking  the  conclusive  experiment  which  might 
explain  Pfeiffer's  phenomenon. 

His  excitement  was  all  the  greater  that  he  was 
very  soon  going  to  the  International  Congress  at 
Buda-Pest,  where  he  intended  to  expose  the  results 
of  his  new  researches,  and  he  feared  that  he  should 
not  have  time  to  make  all  the  experiments  which  he 
required  in  support  of  his  arguments.  However,  the 
general  impression  of  the  Congress  was  clearly  favour- 
able to  the  phagocyte  theory.  This  is  how  M.  Roux 
picturesquely  described  the  scene  at  MetchnikofE's 
Jubilee  in  1915  : 

"  I  can  see  you  now  at  the  Buda-Pest  Congress  in  1894, 
disputing  with  your  antagonists ;  with  your  fiery  face, 
sparkling  eyes,  and  dishevelled  hair,  you  looked  like  the 
Daemon  of  Science,  but  your  words,  your  irresistible  arguments 
raised  the  applause  of  your  audience. 

"  The  new  facts,  which  had  at  first  sight  seemed  to  contra- 
dict the  phagocyte  theory,  now  entered  into  harmony  with  it. 
It  was  found  to  be  sufficiently  comprehensive  to  reconcile  the 
holders  of  the  humoral  theory  with  the  partisans  of  the 
cellular  theory." 

This  is  how  Metchnikoff  had  reconciled  the  apparent 
disagreement  of  Pfeiffer's  phenomenon  with  the 
phagocyte  doctrine  :  he  demonstrated,  by  a  series  of 
experiments,  that  the  extracellular  destruction  of  the 
cholera  vibriones  in  the  peritoneum  of  a  guinea-pig 
vaccinated  against  cholera,  did  in  no  wise  depend  on 
the  chemical  properties  of  the  blood  serum,  but  was 
simply  due  to  the  digestive  juices  which  had  escaped 
from  the  inside  of  the  leucocytes,  damaged  by  the 


160         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

intraperitoneal  injection.  Those  digestive  juices,  or 
cytases,  poured  into  the  peritoneal  liquid  were  what 
killed  the  injected  cholera  vibriones  and  transformed 
them  into  "  PfeifEer's  granulations."  On  the  other 
hand,  if  by  means  of  various  precautions  the  phago- 
cytes were  left  unmolested,  the  extracellular  destruc- 
tion did  not  take  place  and  the  vibriones  were  digested 
within  the  phagocytes. 

Metchnikoff  used  other  experiments  to  prove  that 
the  bactericidal  property  of  blood  juices  did  not  exist 
without  intervention  from  the  phagocytes.  For 
instance,  in  a  guinea-pig  vaccinated  against  cholera, 
the  bacilli  are  not  destroyed  if  they  are  injected  into 
parts  of  the  organism  that  are  devoid  of  pre-existing 
phagocytes,  such  as  in  the  subcutaneous  tissue,  in 
the  anterior  chamber  of  the  eye  or  in  an  aseptically- 
obtained  oedema.  On  the  other  hand,  if,  in  the  same 
medium,  some  exudate  is  injected  containing  damaged 
leucocytes  from  which  the  digestive  juice  is  leaking, 
the  vibriones  introduced  are  destroyed.  The  same 
results  are  obtained  in  vitro. 

All  these  experiments  proved  that  the  extra- 
cellular destruction  of  the  cholera  vibrio  was  accom- 
plished by  the  digestive  juices  which  had  passed  from 
the  phagocytes  into  the  humors  and  not  at  all  through 
a  special  property  of  those  humors.  Once  again  the 
phagocyte  theory  rose  triumphant  from  the  test. 

After  having  finally  proved  that  it  is  by  means  of 
its  phagocytes  that  the  organism  fights  microbes, 
Metchnikofi  wished  to  find  out  whether  it  was  by 
the  same  process  that  it  struggled  with  their  poisons, 
or  toxins.  This  problem,  far  more  difficult  to  solve, 
took  him  many  years'  study.  Whilst  every  phase 
of  the  phagocytes'  struggle  against  microbes  can  be 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          161 

followed  with  the  eyes,  it  is  impossible  to  do  so  where 
poisons  are  concerned,  since  they  are  invisible ;  it 
is  necessary  to  proceed  by  a  different  road. 

Faithful  to  his  method  of  taking  as  a  starting-point 
the  simplest  expression  of  the  phenomenon  to  be 
studied,  Metchnikoff  began  by  lower  beings.  Uni- 
cellular organisms,  such  as  myxomycetes,  amoebae, 
and  infusoria,  sometimes  manifest  a  natural  immunity 
to  certain  poisons.  It  is  also  possible  to  endow 
them  with  artificial  immunity  by  accustoming  them 
gradually  to  substances  which,  ingested  straight  away, 
would  infallibly  have  killed  them.  Such  phenomena, 
seen  in  unicellular  beings,  could  only  be  ascribed  to 
the  reaction  of  the  cell  itself.  Therefore  Metchni- 
koff supposed  a  priori  that  the  phagocytes,  being 
similar  primitive  cells  of  multicellular  beings,  would 
also  react  against  poisons.  And,  in  fact,  he  ascer- 
tained that  the  number  of  phagocytes  in  a  rabbit's 
blood  diminished  considerably  under  the  influence  of 
a  fatal  dose  of  arsenic,  whilst  it  increased  under  the 
influence  of  small  doses  of  the  poison,  to  which  it  was 
possible  to  accustom  the  animal. 

Dr.  Besredka,  a  disciple  of  Metchnikoff,  made  some 
very  interesting  researches,  which  entirely  confirmed 
the  share  of  the  phagocytes  in  the  reaction  against 
sulphides  of  arsenic.  He  had  chosen  the  trisulphide, 
a  very  slightly  soluble  salt  of  an  orange  colour,  in 
order  to  find  it  again  easily  within  the  organism. 
After  having  injected  non-fatal  doses  of  it  into  the 
peritoneal  cavity,  he  obtained  an  exudate  in  which 
all  the  orange  granules  of  the  salt  were  to  be  found 
included  within  those  leucocytes  which  have  a  large, 
non-lobed  nucleus — the  macrophages.  These  cells 
gradually  digested  the  salt  they  had  englobed,  which 

M 


162         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

ended  by  disappearing  entirely  within  them,  and  the 
rabbit  remained  safe  and  sound.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  died  if  the  same  doses  of  the  same  salt  had  been 
protected  from  the  leucocytes  by  an  elderberry  bag, 
or  when  the  leucocytes  had  been  attracted  elsewhere 
by  a  previous  injection  of  carmine  for  instance. 
Those  experiments  removed  all  doubts  as  to  the 
share  of  the  phagocytes  in  the  destruction  of  mineral 
poisons. 

Certain  experiments  on  microbian  poisons  spoke 
in  the  same  sense.  Thus  MM.  Roux  and  Borrel  had 
observed  that  the  diphtheritic  toxin,  which  is  in- 
offensive to  rats  even  in  large  doses,  kills  that  animal 
if  a  small  quantity  of  it  is  introduced  into  the  brain, 
the  probable  explanation  being  that,  in  cases  of  sub- 
cutaneous injections,  the  poison,  "phagocyted"  on  the 
way,  was  destroyed  before  it  reached  the  nerve  cells. 

Thus  experiments  seemed  to  plead  in  favour  of 
the  view  that  the  part  played  by  phagocytosis  is  not 
limited  to  the  struggle  against  microbes,  but  also 
extends  to  the  defence  against  poisons  and  toxins. 

After  having  studied  the  mode  of  destruction  of 
these,  Metchnikoff  wished  to  elucidate  the  origin  of 
the  counter-poisons,  the  specific  antitoxins  discovered 
by  Behring  in  the  humors  of  immunised  organisms, 
a  question  of  which  the  study  was  even  more  difficult. 

Metchnikoff  began  by  asking  himself  whether  the 
microbes  themselves  did  not  produce  antitoxins  in 
order  to  defend  themselves  against  enemy  micro- 
organisms. He  made  many  experiments  but  only 
obtained  negative  results,  and  concluded  that  the 
antitoxins  must  be  manufactured  by  the  organism 
itself. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          163 

The  origin  of  this  property  must  be  more  recent 
than  that  of  the  phagocytic  reaction,  for  it  does  not 
exist  in  plants  or  in  inferior  animals.  It  was  only 
from  superior  cold-blooded  vertebrates,  such  as  the 
crocodile — and  that  only  in  artificial  conditions — and 
upwards,  that  Metchnikoff  succeeded  in  rinding  a 
specific  antitoxic  power  in  the  humors. 

He  ascertained  that  the  vaccination  of  animals  by 
toxins  conferred,  after  a  time,  antitoxic  powers  to  the 
blood  and  humors  which  contained  leucocytes.  He 
concluded  therefrom  that  the  presence  of  antitoxins 
depended  on  that  of  the  phagocytes.  Experiments  on 
divers  higher  animals  having  proved  that,  in  them 
also,  antitoxins  were  localised  in  humors  containing 
phagocytes,  Metchnikoff  concluded  that  the  antitoxins 
were  manufactured  by  the  cells  themselves.  As 
toxins  are  absorbed  and  digested  chiefly  by  macro- 
phages,  it  is  probable  that  it  is  the  latter  also  which 
manufacture  specific  antitoxins,  or  the  final  product 
of  the  digestion  of  corresponding  toxins.  Metchni- 
kofl  could  only  propound  this  idea  as  an  hypothesis, 
for  the  complexity  and  difficulty  of  a  material  demon- 
stration did  not  yet  allow  of  a  definite  solution  of  the 
problem.  However,  certain  observations  on  toxins 
and  antitoxins  pleaded  in  favour  of  this  thesis. 

For  instance,  working  in  collaboration  with  MM. 
Roux  and  Salimbeni,  he  had  found  that  it  is  by 
soluble  poisons  that  the  cholera  vibrions  harm  the 
organism  or  kill  it,  but  that  small  doses  of  the  same 
poisons  are  vaccines  and  make  the  blood  of  the  vac- 
cinated animal  antitoxic.  On  the  other  hand,  a 
microbian  vaccination  is  preventive  against  microbes 
only  but  not  against  toxins  and  the  blood  does  not 
become  antitoxic.  This  is  explained  by  the  fact  that 


164         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

it  is  not  the  same  cells  which  digest  cholera  microbes 
and  cholera  toxins :  the  microphages  digest  the 
vibriones  whilst  the  macrophages  digest  the  poisons 
and,  probably,  manufacture  as  products  of  this 
digestion,  the  corresponding  antibody,  the  cholera 
antitoxins. 

On  the  contrary,  in  cases  of  the  inclusion  of 
microbes  by  macrophages,  as,  for  instance,  in  plague, 
the  blood  acquires  an  antitoxic  power  by  injection  of 
the  microbes  themselves  and  not  by  their  toxins,  as 
was  demonstrated  by  M.  Koux  and  his  collaborators. 
The  same  fact  was  observed  by  Metchnikoff  on  the 
alligator,  in  whom  also  microbes  are  digested  by 
macrophages.  In  those  cases,  when  microbes  and  toxins 
are  digested  by  the  same  cells,  the  latter  manufacture 
antibodies  against  both. 

These  facts  rendered  legitimate  the  supposition 
of  the  macrophagic  origin  of  antitoxins. 

In  1897  an  International  Congress  took  place  in 
Moscow.  Metchnikoff  read  a  paper  on  the  phago- 
cytic  reaction  against  toxins  and  another  dealing 
with  the  whole  of  the  knowledge  acquired  concerning 
human  plague.  He  ended  this  by  a  plea  in  favour  of 
Science,  so  often  accused  of  having  contributed 
nothing  to  the  solution  of  the  most  important  human 
problems,  particularly  ethical  ones,  and  of  having, 
on  the  contrary,  sanctioned  the  law  of  Might  by 
tabulating  the  laws  of  the  struggle  for  existence. 
Metchnikoff  objected  that,  far  from  doing  so,  Science, 
by  revealing  the  laws  of  Nature,  applied  to  humanity 
the  benefits  derived  from  them,  whilst  striving  to 
counterbalance  their  cruel  or  harmful  effects.  The 
struggle  against  plague  and  other  diseases  was  a 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         165 

concrete  example  of  this,  for  here  medical  science 
opposed  itself  to  the  cruelty  of  "  natural  selection." 
He  wound  up  his  speech  by  the  following  words, 
"  Just  as,  in  order  to  satisfy  his  sesthetic  tastes, 
Man  revolts  against  the  laws  of  Nature  which  creates 
races  of  sterile  and  fragile  flowers,  he  does  not  hesitate 
to  defend  the  weak  against  the  laws  of  natural 
selection.  Science  has  been  faithful  to  her  mission 
and  to  her  generous  traditions.  Let  her,  then,  progress 
unhindered." 

Metchnikoff's  friend  and  companion,  M.  Nocard, 
wrote  to  me  concerning  Metchnikoff's  paper  : 

Do  not  believe  a  word  that  MetchnikofE  tells  you.  He 
had  tremendous  success.  The  somewhat  free  form  of  his 
paper  contributed  to  its  success,  as  it  only  made  his  conviction 
and  enthusiasm  more  apparent.  Thus  the  Sibyl  on  her 
tripod. 

Metchnikoff  had  at  this  period  a  very  talented 
disciple,  M.  I.  Bordet,  who  opened  a  new  path  by 
a  series  of  researches  of  the  greatest  importance. 
He  found,  among  other  things,  that  "  the  figured 
elements  "  can  be  destroyed  outside  the  cells,  in  the 
humors.  Thus,  if  red  blood  corpuscles  from  one  animal 
are  injected  into  an  animal  of  a  different  kind,  these 
globules  are  destroyed,  not  within  the  phagocytes, 
but  outside  them,  in  the  ambient  humors.  Metchni- 
koff  studied  this  phenomenon  and  proved  that  the  ex- 
planation was  the  same  that  he  had  previously  given  of 
Pfeiffer's  phenomenon  in  the  case  of  cholera  vibrions. 
In  Bordet's  experiments,  the  leucocytes  which  were 
already  existing  in  the  humors  were  also  damaged  by 
the  experimental  shock ;  but,  if  this  was  carefully 
avoided,  the  phagocytes,  remaining  intact,  englobed 


166         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

and  digested  the  injected  red  corpuscles  and  no 
phenomenon  similar  to  Pfeiffer's  took  place. 

These  observations  led  Metchnikoff  to  a  thorough 
study  of  the  destruction  of  cellular  elements  by  the 
phagocytes.  He  had  already  observed  that,  whilst  the 
struggle  with  microbes  is  chiefly  undertaken  by  small 
leucocytes  with  a  lobed  nucleus — the  microphages — 
it  is  the  great  leucocytes  with  a  single  large  nucleus 
— the  so-called  macrophages — which  undertake  the 
destruction  of  cells,  "figured"  elements,  as  well  as  that 
of  toxins.  The  macrophages  are  to  be  found  not  only 
in  the  blood  but  also  in  different  organs  such  as  the 
liver,  spleen,  kidneys,  etc.  ;  they  seize  upon  living 
cells  by  means  of  mobile  protoplasmic  prolongations 
with  which  they  draw  them  in  and  end  by  ingesting 
them  completely.  Not  only  do  they  thus  absorb 
foreign  cellular  elements  such  as  red  corpuscles, 
spermatozoa,  etc.,  but  also  all  the  weakened  cells 
of  the  organism  itself. 

This  weakening  may  be  due  to  normal  phenomena 
such  as  the  metamorphosis  of  insects  or  tadpoles, 
when  certain  organs,  as  they  weaken,  become  useless 
or  inactive.  But,  oftener,  this  weakening  is  due  to 
pathological  causes,  as  in  morbid  atrophies  or  poisoning 
by  microbian  toxins.  In  any  case,  the  enfeeblement 
of  cells  exposes  them  to  be  devoured  by  macro- 
phages, which  brings  about  the  atrophy  of  the  cells 
or  even  of  the  organs  which  contain  them. 

These  observations  suggested  to  Metchnikoff  the 
idea  that  senile  atrophy  might  be  due  to  the  same 
mechanism,  and  his  thoughts  turned  towards  the 
problem  of  the  causes  of  old  age. 

But,  before  undertaking  researches  in  a  new 
direction,  he  wished  to  conclude  those  he  had  been 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         167 

pursuing  for  twenty  years  on  the  phenomenon  of 
phagocytosis.  He  therefore  started  to  complete  his 
investigations  on  immunity  in  order  to  epitomise 
them  and  to  give  a  definite  form  to  his  doctrine  on 
that  subject. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 

1900.  Immunity — Natural  Immunity — Artificial  Immunity. 

FOR  centuries  the  question  of  immunity  has  occupied 
the  human  mind  because  the  prevention  of  disease 
has  ever  been  one  of  the  greatest  preoccupations  of 
Man.  Savages  had  already  observed  that  man  can 
become  refractory  to  the  venom  of  serpents,  either 
through  a  slight  bite  or  by  the  application  of  certain 
preparations  of  that  venom  on  scarified  skin.  It 
was  also  a  popular  and  very  ancient  notion  that  the 
contact  of  a  slightly  scratched  hand  with  the  pustules 
of  cow-pox  conferred  immunity  against  human  small- 
pox. It  was  on  this  observation  that  Jenner  founded 
his  method  of  antivariolic  vaccination.  The  latter, 
in  its  turn,  suggested  to  Pasteur  the  idea  of  attempting 
antimicrobian  vaccinations.  Having  ascertained  that 
old  cultures  of  chicken  cholera,  previously  very  viru- 
lent, had  become  harmless,  he  wondered  whether  they 
had  become  a  vaccine  and  proved  by  experiment 
that  they  had.  That  led  him  to  the  principle  of  the 
attenuation  of  viruses  and  to  that  of  vaccination 
by  attenuated  microbes.  Thus  the  problem  of  the 
mechanism  of  immunity  was  stated. 

The  first  theories  propounded  on  the  subject  con- 
cerned the  humors.  Pasteur  supposed  that  im- 
munity was  due  to  the  absorption,  by  the  vaccinating 
microbes,  of  certain  nutritive  substances  in  the  humors, 

168 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         169 

which,  not  being  renewed  for  some  time,  were  missed 
by  the  microbes  afterwards  introduced  into  the  organ- 
ism, which  therefore  could  not  develop  completely. 
Chauveau,  on  the  other  hand,  thought  that,  in  cases 
of  immunity,  the  humors  contained  substances  which 
were  unfavourable  to  microbes.  Those  theories  ex- 
plained particular  facts,  but  were  not  applicable  to 
the  generality  of  cases. 

Other  theories,1  whilst  attributing  an  active  part 
to  the  organism  itself,  failed  to  account  for  the 
mechanism  of  immunity  in  general.  This  was  due 
to  the  fact  that  knowledge  at  that  time  lacked  the 
two  essential  elements,  i.e.  the  modifications  suffered 
by  the  organism  which  was  becoming  immunised,  and 
the  fate  of  the  microbes  in  the  refractory  organism. 

The  disappearance  of  the  microbes  in  the  cured 
or  refractory  animal  had  indeed  been  observed  ; 2  the 
inflammatory  reaction  of  the  organism  in  the  course 
of  immunisation  had  been  noted  ; 3  microbes  had 
long  ago  been  observed  inside  the  white  globules  of 
pus  ; 4  but,  either  an  erroneous  interpretation  was 
given  to  the  facts  observed,  or,  rather,  the  links  of 
causality  between  those  factors  failed  to  be  established 
because  they  were  observed  solely  in  the  complicated 
organism  of  superior  beings.  Humoral  theories,  less 
easy  to  test,  preserved  an  appearance  of  generality 
and  were  easily  admitted. 

Such  was  the  state  of  the  question  when  Metchni- 
koff  approached  it  from  a  naturalist's  point  of  view. 
He  knew  the  life  of  unicellular  beings  and  that  of  the 
lower  multicellular  organisms  in  their  complete  sim- 

1  Naegeli,  Biichner,  Gravitz.  2  Chauveau. 

3  Biichner. 

4  Hayem,   Birach,   Hirschfeld,   Kleps,   Recklinghausen,  Waldeyer,  and 
Virchow. 


170         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

plicity  ;  he  knew  their  mode  of  defence  by  ingestion 
and  intracellular  digestion.  Having  become  familiar 
with  these  phenomena,  visible  in  the  single  cell,  he 
was  better  able  to  see  his  way  in  the  complicated 
milieu  of  higher  beings.  He  was  therefore  able  to 
discover  the  connection  between  the  divers  factors 
which  other  scientists  had  observed  singly.  He  was 
able  to  prove  that  it  is  the  combination  of  these 
factors,  i.e.  inflammation,  the  ingestion  of  living  and 
virulent  microbes,  and  their  disappearance  by  means 
of  intracellular  digestion  which  makes  immunity 
possible.  He  demonstrated  that  "  there  is  but  one 
permanent  element  in  natural  or  acquired  immunity, 
and  that  is  phagocytosis." 

The  extension  and  importance  of  this  factor, 
applicable  to  the  whole  animal  kingdom,  proved  the 
truth  and  general  scope  of  the  phagocyte  doctrine 
of  immunity. 

In  1900,  Metchnikoff  presented  to  the  Inter- 
national Congress  in  Paris  a  complete  tabulation  of 
his  researches  and  fought  his  contradictors  for  the 
last  time,  after  which,  convinced  that  his  deductions 
were  solid,  he  began  to  write  a  work  on  Immunity  in 
Infectious  Diseases.  In  it  he  epitomised,  as  in  a  great 
harmonious  chord,  the  results  of  his  researches,  reach- 
ing over  a  period  of  nearly  twenty  years  ;  he  affirmed 
and  gave  final  expression  to  his  doctrine  of  immunity, 
based  on  the  comparative  study  of  the  mechanism  of 
that  phenomenon  and  of  its  evolution  along  the  whole 
scale  of  living  beings  ;  he  related  his  controversies, 
analysed  the  objections  to  his  doctrine,  expounded 
the  theories  of  other  scientists  concerning  immunity, 
and  gave  a  general  view  of  the  present  state  of 
the  question.  This  book  is  a  living  picture  of  a 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         171 

long  and  important  part  of  MetchnikofTs  scientific 
achievements. 

The  question  of  immunity  is  of  such  great  im- 
portance, the  mechanism  of  this  phenomenon  and 
the  physiology  of  intracellular  digestion  are  so  com- 
plicated, that  I  have  thought  it  useful  to  epitomise 
here  the  exposition  given  of  it  by  Metchnikoff  in  his 
book.  Readers  who  do  not  care  to  go  further  into 
the  subject  can  pass  over  the  next  few  pages  with- 
out hindering  their  comprehension  of  the  following 
chapters. 

Diseases  affect  all  living  beings,  and  the  greater 
number  of  plants  and  animals  would  cease  to  exist 
without  innate  or  acquired  immunity. 

Unicellular  beings  are  generally  immune  against 
infectious  diseases,  which  are  rarely  observed  in  them. 
Their  body  being  almost  entirely  made  up  of  digestive 
protoplasm,  the  microbes  which  they  absorb  are 
directly  introduced  into  a  noxious  medium  and  are 
destroyed  therein  like  any  other  food.  If  the 
microbes  are  indigestible,  they  are  immediately 
rejected ;  hence,  in  the  majority  of  cases,  they 
cannot  become  harmful. 

This  resistance  of  unicellular  beings  to  many 
microbes  and  microbian  toxins  is  due  not  only  to 
the  intense  digestive  power  of  the  cell  but  also  to 
the  extreme  sensitiveness  which  rules  over  the  choice 
of  food.  Owing  to  this  protoplasmic  sensitiveness 
(chimiotaxis)  protozoa  are  attracted  towards  certain 
microbes  or  substances  (positive  chimiotaxis)  and  re- 
pelled by  others  (negative  chimiotaxis).  Thus,  many 
ciliate  infusoria  choose  bacteria  only  for  their  food ; 
they  are  sharply  repelled  by  dead  infusoria,  etc. 


172         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Therefore,  in  the  natural  immunity  of  unicellular 
beings,  two  fundamental  elements  may  already  be 
observed :  sensitiveness  and  intracellular  digestion. 
No  researches  have  yet  been  made  on  the  possibility  of 
conferring  on  protozoa  an  artificial  immunity  against 
certain  pathogenic  microbes  and  their  poisons.  But 
unicellular  beings,  insensible  to  microbian  poisons,  are 
the  reverse  to  many  chemical  substances  which,  in  their 
normal  life,  they  have  no  opportunity  of  ingesting. 

It  has  been  proved  by  experiment  that,  against 
many  of  those  chemical  substances,  an  artificial  im- 
munity may  be  given  to  the  protozoa  by  accustoming 
them  gradually.  Very  diluted  solutions  are  added  at 
first  to  the  medium  in  which  they  live  and,  by  gradu- 
ally concentrating  those  solutions,  an  artificial  im- 
munity is  conferred  ;  the  negative  chimiotaxis  becomes 
positive,  allowing  the  protozoa  to  absorb  and  digest 
the  poison,  now  become  a  food. 

Habit  is  therefore  the  fundamental  condition  of 
artificial  immunity  ;  it  must  be  that  also  of  immunity 
naturally  acquired.  Having  accidentally  digested 
enfeebled  microbes  or  having  suffered  an  attack  of 
disease,  the  unicellular  being  becomes  accustomed  to 
a  stronger  virus  and  becomes  immune  against  it. 
The  fact  that  so  many  unicellular  beings  have  become 
thus  accustomed  is  therefore  connected  with  their 
sensitiveness  and  their  digestion.  Accordingly, 
sensitiveness,  habit,  and  digestion  are  the  funda- 
mental factors  of  the  mechanism  of  immunity  in 
protozoa  ;  this  immunity  thus  indisputably  belongs 
to  the  category  of  purely  cellular  phenomena. 

Having  arrived  at  this  conclusion,  Metchnikoff 
thought  that  the  same  mechanism  of  immunity  must 
be  found  in  other  primitive  and  analogous  cells,  such 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         173 

as  the  phagocytes  of  multicellular  beings.  This  was 
proved  by  a  whole  series  of  observations  and  by  the 
fact  that  the  immunity  of  higher  animals  is  connected 
with  an  intense  phagocytosis.  In  fact,  as  he  ascended 
the  scale  of  beings  and  studied  their  natural  and 
artificial  immunity,  he  ascertained  that,  in  all  of  them, 
the  essence  of  immunity,  masked  by  the  complexity 
of  the  organism,  reduced  itself  to  the  phagocytes 
becoming  accustomed  to  noxious  agents.  The  mechan- 
ism of  immunity  in  protozoa  could  therefore  really  be 
compared  with  that  of  immunity  in  multicellular 
beings. 

Becoming  accustomed  and  becoming  immune  are 
phenomena  of  a  general  order,  for  they  can  be  mani- 
fested not  only  by  animals,  but  also  by  plants.  They, 
too,  have  to  defend  themselves  against  numerous 
diseases.  Lower  vegetables,  such  as  myxomycetes 
(beings  which  stand  on  the  limit  between  the  animal 
and  vegetable  kingdoms),  have  an  amo3boid  phase, 
in  which  they  are  but  a  simple  heap  of  formless 
protoplasm.  During  that  stage  of  their  life,  myxo- 
mycete  behave  towards  noxious  agents  exactly  in 
the  same  way  as  unicellular  beings  and,  like  them, 
acquire  immunity  by  becoming  gradually  accustomed. 

In  higher  vegetables,  the  mechanism  is  different 
because  of  their  structure.  The  cells  of  nearly  all 
plants  are  immobilised  by  rigid  membranes  ;  there- 
fore they  cannot  surround  their  prey,  but  protect 
themselves  by  the  production  of  tough  membranes 
(cicatrisation)  and  by  the  secretion  of  various  juices. 
Certain  of  these  juices  (gums  and  resins)  become 
solid  when  exposed  to  the  air  and  constitute  a  sort 
of  natural  (dressing)  ;  others  (essences)  are  antiseptic. 
The  secretion  of  these  cellular  juices  in  plants  is 


174         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

therefore  a  powerful  means  of  defence.  This  defence 
is  due  to  the  extreme  sensitiveness  of  the  protoplasma 
of  vegetable  cells  :  they  react  against  irritation  by  a 
defensive  secretion.  Vegetables,  as  well  as  unicellular 
beings,  can  accustom  themselves  or  become  artificially 
accustomed  to  noxious  influences  and  acquire  im- 
munity. 

As  to  animals,  Metchnikoff  had  already  proved 
long  ago  that  they  defend  themselves  against  morbid 
agents  by  phagocytosis,  i.e.  by  intracellular  digestion. 
It  is  always  to  be  found  in  cases  of  immunity  and  is 
indispensable  to  it,  on  the  same  grounds  as  in  uni- 
cellular beings.  The  organism  of  multicellular  animals 
possesses  various  cells  which  play  the  part  of  phago- 
cytes. There  are  some  in  the  blood  and  humors,  as 
also  in  the  divers  organs  and  in  the  tissues.  These 
phagocytes  are  either  mobile — leucocytes,  or  fixed — 
tissue-cells.  However,  all  those  cells  may  be  classed 
into  two  principal  groups  :  the  microphages  and  the 
macrophages.  Both  categories  of  cells  are  capable  of 
digesting  microbes,  but  it  is  chiefly  done  by  the  micro- 
phages, whilst  macrophages  more  especially  digest 
figured  elements  (cells)  of  animal  origin  and  poisons. 
It  may  be  said  that  the  microphages  are  vegetarians 
whilst  the  macrophages  are  chiefly  carnivorous. 

What,  then,  is  the  mechanism  of  phagocytic 
digestion  ? 

Intracellular  digestion  by  phagocytes  is  accom- 
plished by  means  of  digestive  ferments,  similar  to 
those  of  our  own  digestive  organs.  "  In  both  cases," 
says  Metchnikoff,  "  a  diastasic  action  is  due  to  soluble 
ferments  produced  by  living  elements.  In  intra- 
cellular digestion,  the  diastases  digest  within  the 
cells,  whereas  in  extracellular  digestion  the  pheno- 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         175 

menon  takes  place  outside  the  cells,  in  the  cavity  of 
the  gastro-intestinal  tube." 

Only  gradually  has  intracellular  digestion  given 
place  to  the  digestion  by  secreted  juices.  The  link 
between  these  two  modes  is  to  be  found  in  certain 
transparent  Invertebrates,  such  as  the  floating  mol- 
lusc Phyllirhoe.  The  nourishment  is  first  digested 
in  the  cavity  of  the  digestive  tube  by  secreted  juices, 
and  its  treatment  is  completed  within  the  amoeboid 
cells  of  the  caecum. 

In  higher  animals,  the  digestion  of  food  is  due 
to  several  digestive  ferments  (rennet,  pepsin,  tryp- 
sin,  enterokinase,  etc.)  produced  by  divers  organs 
(stomach,  pancreas,  intestines).  The  phagocytes 
also  manufacture  several  digestive  ferments;  their 
principal  digestive  juice  is  a  soluble  ferment  of  the 
trypsin  category,  to  which  Metchnikoff  gave  the 
name  of  cytase.1 

To  the  morphological  difference  of  the  phagocytes 
corresponds  also  a  difference  in  the  properties  of  their 
cytases,  which  are  suited  to  the  digestion  of  this  or 
that  food.  The  cytases  are  kept  within  the  interior 
of  the  cells  and  only  escape  into  the  humors  when 
the  phagocytes  are  damaged  (Pfeiffer's  phenomenon). 
This  kind  of  ferment  does  not  withstand  a  tempera- 
ture above  55°  to  58°  C.  In  natural  immunity,  it 
plays  the  principal  part  by  digesting  morbid  agents 
inside  the  phagocytes  like  any  other  food.  But,  in 
artificial  immunity.,  other  soluble  ferments  come  into 
play,  developed  in  consequence  of  vaccination. 

The  principal  of  those  is  the  fixator.2    It  is  less 

1  It  ia  also  called  alexine  or  complement  by  other  writers. 

2  Designated  by  other  writers  by  various  synonyms  :    preventive,  or 
sensibilising  substance,  immunising  body,  amboceptor. 


176         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

sensitive  than  cytasis  to  high  temperatures  and  can 
bear  a  temperature  of  65°  to  68°  C.  It  is  incapable, 
by  itself,  of  killing  and  digesting,  but  by  fixing  on 
them,  it  bites  them,  so  to  speak,  and  makes  them 
sensitive  to  the  action  of  the  phagocytic  cytases, 
which  can  thus  digest  them  more  easily. 

The  fixator  may  be  compared  to  enterokinase,  a 
special  ferment  in  the  small  intestine  of  higher  animals 
which  also  does  not  by  itself  digest  food  but  which 
activates  in  a  high  degree  the  digestive  power  of 
pancreatic  ferments.  However,  it  has  the  property 
of  fixing  itself  on  fibrin ;  it  is  obvious  that  entero- 
kinase  and  the  fixator  have  the  same  essential 
properties.  This  similarity  again  proves  that  the 
destruction  of  morbid  agents  by  the  phagocytes 
really  corresponds  with  actual  digestion. 

It  is  in  consequence  of  the  digestion  of  vaccinal 
products  that  the  phagocytes  manufacture  the  fixator. 
Created  at  the  expense  of  a  given  vaccinal  substance, 
the  fixator  has  a  specific  character  which  corresponds 
with  that  substance,  whereas  the  cytase  already 
existing  within  the  phagocytes  never  has  a  specific 
character. 

Artificial  immunisation  generally  produces  the 
formation  of  so  great  a  quantity  of  fixators  that  the 
phagocytes  are  unable  to  retain  them  and  excrete  them 
in  part  in  the  ambient  humors,  i.e.  the  blood  plasma, 
or  serum.  When,  afterwards,  virulent  morbid  agents 
(microbes  or  figured  elements)  are  introduced  into 
an  organism  which  has  been  immunised  against  them, 
they  are  at  once  faced,  in  the  humors,  with  fixators, 
which  immediately  exert  a  biting  action  on  them 
and  render  them  sensitive  to  the  action  of  the 
intracellular  cytasis  of  the  phagocytes.  The  same 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          177 

mechanism  explains  the  specificity  of  the  serums  of 
vaccinated  animals. 

The  quantity  of  specific  fixators  in  the  humors 
depends  on  the  surplus  production  of  that  ferment  by 
the  phagocytes  and  is  not  always  the  same.  That  is 
why  different  serums  are  preventive  in  different 
degrees.  They  are  inactive  if  the  phagocytes  have 
not  produced  enough  fixators  to  pass  any  out  into 
the  humors.  For  a  serum  is  only  preventive  when  it 
brings  into  the  new  organism  into  which  it  is  in- 
jected a  sufficient  quantity  of  fixators  ready  to 
sensibilise  the  morbid  agents  afterwards  introduced 
into  the  organism. 

The  over-production  of  antibodies — fixators  or  anti- 
toxins— corresponds  up  to  a  certain  point  with  the 
frequency  and  quantity  of  vaccinal  injections  ;  that 
is  why  serums  are  usually  preventive  in  artificial 
immunity  and  very  rarely  so  in  natural  immunity. 
Through  successive  inoculations,  the  cells  become 
accustomed  to  digesting  the  microbes,  or  figured 
elements,  and  manufacture,  in  consequence  of  that 
digestion,  growing  quantities  of  fixators. 

In  natural  conditions,  on  the  other  hand,  morbid 
agents  do  not  usually  penetrate  into  the  organism  in 
massive  or  repeated  doses  ;  therefore  digestion  under 
natural  conditions  results  in  a  less  abundant  produc- 
tion of  fixators  which  can  be  contained  in  the  interior 
of  the  phagocytes  without  leaking  into  the  humors 
in  sufficient  quantities  to  render  the  latter  preventive. 

It  might  be  thought  that  immunity  against  patho- 
genic microbes  is  accompanied  by  immunity  against 
their  toxins.  In  reality  that  is  not  always  the  case, 
and  very  often  the  organism,  now  made  refractory 
to  certain  microbes,  remains  sensitive  to  their  toxic 

N 


178         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

products.  Thus  antimicrobian  immunity  and  anti- 
toxic immunity  constitute  in  most  cases  two  distinct 
properties.  In  order  to  confer  antitoxic  immunity 
recourse  must  be  had  to  vaccination  by  soluble  poisons 
and  toxins. 

Immunity,  acquired  naturally,  is  so  especially 
against  microbes  and  not  against  toxins,  for,  in  nature, 
it  is  almost  always  by  microbes  that  the  organism 
is  threatened.  As  to  antitoxic  immunity,  it  is  very 
probably  due  to  the  intracellular  digestion  of  toxins 
by  the  different  macrophages.  This  hypothesis  is 
supported  by  the  experiments  quoted  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter.  During  antitoxic  vaccination,  the 
macrophages  manufacture,  probably  at  the  expense 
of  vaccinal  toxins,  a  certain  quantity  of  antitoxins, 
substances  which  offer  a  great  similarity  with  the 
fixators.  Like  them,  they  are  specific  ;  they  are 
also  produced  in  great  quantities  and  excreted  into 
the  humors,  which  they  render  antitoxic  when  suffi- 
ciently abundant ;  finally,  they  are  not  very  sensitive 
to  high  temperatures.  That  is  why,  in  spite  of  the 
impossibility  of  proving  their  origin  directly,  it  is 
quite  probable  that  it  is  analogous  to  that  of  the 
fixators  and  that  antitoxins  are  manufactured  by 
cellular  elements,  the  macrophages  in  particular.  For 
it  is  they  which  absorb  and  digest  toxins  as  well  as 
soluble  poisons. 

This  deduction  is  also  supported  by  the  antitoxic 
immunity  which  may  be  conferred  on  unicellular 
beings  in  which  the  cell  alone  enters  into  play. 

Phagocytes  no  doubt  manufacture  many  other 
soluble  ferments  corresponding  with  the  elements 
which  they  absorb,  for,  in  a  vaccinated  organism, 
divers  new  specific  properties  of  the  serum  are  to  be 


LIFE  OP  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         179 

found,  such  as  that  of  agglutination,  precipitation,  etc. 
Humoral  properties  may  be  more  or  less  durable, 
in  proportion  as  the  products  manufactured  by  the 
phagocytes  are  more  or  less  rapidly  evacuated  by  the 
organism. 

All  these  humoral  properties,  traced  back  to  their 
first  source,  depend  upon  the  digestive  activity  of  the 
phagocytes,  since  they  are  the  products  of  that 
digestion.  In  cases  where  it  has  not  yet  been  possible 
to  make  a  direct  demonstration  of  this,  it  becomes 
evident  through  analogy  and  experiments  pointing  in 
that  direction. 

To  sum  up,  according  to  Metchnikoff,  "  Immunity  in 
infectious  diseases  is  linked  with  cellular  physiology, 
namely,  with  the  phenomenon  of  the  resorption  of 
morbid  agents  through  intracellular  digestion.  In  a  final 
analysis,  the  latter  (as  also  the  digestion  of  food  in 
the  gastro-intestinal  tube)  reduces  itself  to  phenomena 
of  a  physico-chemical  order ;  however,  it  is  a  real 
digestion  accomplished  by  the  living  cell.  .  .  .  The 
study  of  Immunity,  from  a  general  point  of  view, 
belongs  to  the  subject  of  Digestion." 

Immunity  against  diseases  is  but  one  of  the  mani- 
festations of  an  immunity  on  a  much  larger  scale, 
always  based,  in  final  analysis,  on  the  sensitiveness 
of  the  living  cellular  protoplasm.  The  sensitiveness 
of  the  nervous  cells  extends  this  phenomenon  to 
the  psychical  domain.  They  also  are  capable  of 
becoming  accustomed  to  external  irritations  of  all 
kinds,  hence  constituting  a  psychical  immunity  for 
the  organism.  We  all  know  that  one  can  become 
accustomed  to  many  painful  or  violent  sensations; 
and,  as  MetchnikoS  says  :  "...  It  is  very  probable 
that  the  whole  gamut  of  Habit,  starting  from  the 


180         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

unicellular  beings,  who  accustom  themselves  to  live  in 
an  unsuitable  medium,  to  cultured  men  who  acquire 
the  habit  of  not  believing  in  human  justice,  rests  on 
one  and  the  same  fundamental  property  of  living 
matter." 


CHAPTER  XXVII 

Private  sorrows— Death  of  Pasteur,  1895— Ill-health— Senile  atrophies 
— Premature  death — Orthobiosis — Syphilis — Acquisition  of  an- 
thropoid apes. 

METCHNIKOFF'S  health  had  suffered  from  the  numerous 
emotions  provoked  by  the  struggle  in  defence  of  the 
phagocyte  doctrine  and  also  from  a  series  of  sad 
events.  In  1893,  sickness  and  death  fell  upon  our 
family ;  I  lost  a  sister  and  a  brother  at  a  short  interval 
and  had  myself  to  undergo  a  serious  operation.  My 
husband  nursed  me  night  and  day,  as  a  mother  might 
have  done,  and  went  through  the  deepest  anxiety 
on  account  of  post-operative  complications.  All  this 
told  on  him  all  the  more  that  he  had  just  endured 
cruel  moral  suffering  during  the  experiments  on  cholera 
mentioned  above.  In  1894,  an  agricultural  crisis  in 
Russia  influenced  our  material  situation  and  gave  him 
many  worries.  In  the  autumn  of  1895,  M.  Pasteur's 
health  became  worse  and,  soon  afterwards,  he  died. 

This  series  of  calamities  depressed  Metchnikoff,  his 
old  cardiac  trouble  returned,  and  he  again  became  a 
prey  to  insomnia.  We  spent  part  of  the  holidays  in 
the  mountains,  thinking  it  might  do  him  good,  but 
he  did  not  care  for  a  prolonged  rest ;  he  was  pre- 
occupied by  the  thought  of  his  interrupted  experiments 
and  only  thought  of  returning  to  the  laboratory. 

In  1898,  he  had  some  disquieting  symptoms  of 

181 


182         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

kidney  trouble,  a  little  albumen.  He  consulted  the 
celebrated  German  physician,  von  Noorden,  who 
found  nothing  serious,  but  this  did  not  reassure  him 
and  he  continued  to  worry  about  himself. 

Already  some  time  previously,  theoretical  considera- 
tions on  senile  atrophies  had  directed  his  thoughts 
towards  old  age.  His  reflections  now  turned  towards 
the  psychological  aspect  of  the  problem  ;  he  analysed 
his  personal  sensations  and  realised  that  he,  at  the 
age  of  53,  felt  an  ardent  desire  to  live.  This  imperious 
instinct  for  life,  in  spite  of  the  inevitable  evolution 
towards  personal  death  and  old  age,  brought  his 
thoughts  back  to  the  disharmonies  of  human  nature. 
But  now,  through  all  his  gloomy  reflections,  he  was 
borne  up  by  the  unshakable  conviction  that  Science 
would  succeed  in  correcting  those  disharmonies  and 
he  continued  to  work  with  untiring  energy. 

He  had  prescribed  for  himself  a  hygienic  diet, 
based  on  the  idea  that  the  cause  of  his  own  condition 
and  senility  in  general  was  due  to  a  chronic  poisoning 
by  intestinal  microbes.  This  diet  consisted  in  avoiding 
raw  food  in  order  not  to  introduce  noxious  microbes 
into  the  intestines,  and  in  absorbing  their  useful 
enemies,  the  acid-forming  microbes  of  sour  milk. 
This  diet  was  very  favourable  to  his  health. 

After  he  had  finished  his  book  on  immunity  he  at 
last  allowed  himself  to  pass  on  to  the  new  questions 
which  preoccupied  him,  i.e.  senility  and  death. 

He  set  forth  a  sketch  of  his  ideas  in  1901  in  a 
paper  which  he  read  at  Manchester  (Wilde  Lecture) 
on  the  "  Flora  of  the  Human  Body."  He  reviewed 
this  flora  and  pointed  out  the  harmful  effect  of  the 
microbes,  especially  those  of  the  large  intestine  the 
toxins  of  which  effect  a  chronic  poisoning  of  the 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          183 

cells  of  our  organism  and  thus  provoke  their  gradual 
weakening.  He  then  indicated  the  means  of  combat- 
ing this  evil,  on  the  one  hand  by  stimulating  the  vital 
activity  of  the  cells  exposed  to  enfeeblement,  by 
means,  for  instance,  of  small  doses  of  specific  cyto- 
toxins,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  by  direct  action  on 
intestinal  microbes.  He  concluded  by  saying  that 
"  the  intestinal  flora  is  the  principal  cause  of  the 
too  short  duration  of  our  life,  which  flickers  out 
before  having  reached  its  goal.  Human  conscience 
has  succeeded  in  making  this  injustice  obvious ; 
Science  must  now  set  to  work  to  correct  it.  It  will 
succeed  in  doing  so,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
opening  century  will  witness  the  solution  of  this  great 
problem." 

Metchnikoff  considered  that  our  chronic  poisoning 
by  intestinal  microbes  weakens  our  cellular  elements  ; 
he  supposed  that  the  same  cause  might  provoke 
senile  phenomena,  manifestly  due  to  weakness  of  the 
tissues. 

One  of  the  first  manifestations  of  senility  being  the 
whitening  of  hair,  he  began  to  study  the  mechanism 
of  that.  He  had  previously  observed  the  dominant 
part  played  by  phagocytosis  in  all  phenomena  of 
atrophy,  and  it  occurred  to  him  that  it  may  be  phago- 
cytes which  destroy  the  colouring  matter  of  hair,  a 
substance  which,  in  the  form  of  tiny  granules,  is 
enclosed  within  the  hair  cells.  In  fact,  he  found 
that  the  whitening  process  is  accompanied  by  a 
stimulation  of  the  amoeboid  cells  which  introduce 
their  protoplasmic  prolongations  into  the  periphery 
of  the  hair.  They  absorb  the  coloured  granules,  or 
pigment,  and  digest  it,  partly  on  the  spot,  partly 
after  carrying  it  into  the  root  of  the  hair,  often  even 


184         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

in  the  connective  tissue  which  supports  the  hairy 
scalp.  As  the  pigment  becomes  destroyed,  the  hair 
loses  its  colour  and  whitens.  The  cells  which  devour 
the  pigment — pigmentophages — belong  to  the  cate- 
gory of  macrophages  which,  in  general,  absorb  all  the 
enfeebled  cells  in  the  organism. 

MetchnikofE  was  able  to  note  similar  phenomena 
in  divers  other  senile  atrophies  either  by  his  own 
ulterior  researches  or  by  collaboration  with  his  pupils 
(MM.  Salimbeni  and  Weinberg). 

In  the  same  way  that  the  whitening  of  the  hair 
depends  on  the  destruction  of  pigment  by  pigmento- 
phages, the  wrinkles  of  the  skin,  weakness  of  the 
muscles,  friability  of  the  bones,  and  senile  degeneres- 
cence  of  divers  organs  are  caused  by  the  destruction 
of  weakened  cells  which  do  not  defend  themselves 
and  thus  become  the  prey  of  the  stronger  and  more 
resisting  macrophages.  Senility  is  thus  no  other  than 
a  generalised  atrophy.  What  is  it  that  provokes  it  ? 
The  answer  is  :  The  swarming  microbes  in  our  large 
intestine.  They  form  the  permanent  source  of  a 
slow  poisoning  of  our  organism.  This  fact  alone 
suffices  to  explain  one  of  the  principal  causes  of  the 
enfeebling  of  our  tissues.  It  is  not  simultaneous  in 
all  the  cells  because  of  their  different  powers  of 
resistance.  The  struggle  and  destruction  of  the  weak 
by  the  strong  is  the  cruel  law  of  nature  ;  therefore 
the  macrophages,  more  resisting  to  poisons,  take 
advantage  of  the  weakening  of  other  cells  in  order 
to  devour  them,  and  this  is  one  of  the  causes  of 
senility. 

These  reflections  and  the  biological  researches  which 
confirmed  them  allowed  Metchnikoif  gradually  to 
build  up  a  philosophical  doctrine,  which  he  ex- 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          185 
pounded  in  1903  in  his  work,  fitudes  sur  la  nature 


He  considered  "  old  age  "  as  a  pathological  pheno- 
menon. He  saw  in  it  one  of  the  most  important  dis- 
harmonies of  human  nature,  because  of  the  fact  that 
neither  senility  nor  death  is  accompanied  by  a  natural 
instinct.  The  accomplishment  of  every  physiological 
function  leads  to  satiety  or  to  a  desire  for  rest ;  after 
a  busy  day,  man  feels  an  instinctive  need  for  rest  and 
sleep.  But,  in  his  maturity,  he  has  no  desire  to  grow 
old,  and  in  his  old  age  none  to  die.  It  is  rare  that 
one  should  aspire  to  die,  and  nobody  wishes  to  grow 
old.  These  facts  are  in  contradiction  with  other 
natural  phenomena  ;  they  are  all  the  more  discordant 
that  they  play  an  immense  part  in  our  psychical  life. 

After  a  general  review  of  opinions  on  human  nature, 
Metchnikoff  analysed  it  from  the  biological  point  of 
view ;  he  revealed  its  discords  and  concluded  that  it 
is  far  from  being  perfect.  In  his  eyes,  the  lack  of 
harmony  in  the  human  being  is  an  inheritance  from 
our  animal  ancestors ;  they  have  handed  down  to  us 
a  whole  series  of  remains  of  organs  which  are  not  only 
useless  but  even  harmful  in  the  new  conditions  of 
human  existence. 

The  large  intestine,  inherited  from  mammalian 
ancestors,  holds  the  first  place  among  those  noxious 
organs.  This  reservoir  of  food  refuse  was  very  useful 
to  our  animal  forebears  in  their  struggle  for  existence  ; 
it  allowed  them  not  to  interrupt  their  flight  whilst 
pursued  by  their  enemies.  In  man,  whose  life  condi- 
tions are  different,  a  large  intestine  of  that  size, 
without  offering  the  same  advantages,  is  a  source  of 
slow  and  continuous  poisoning  and  a  cause  of  prema- 
ture senility  and  death. 


186         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Man,  after  acquiring  a  still  higher  development, 
realised  these  evils  and  made  concentrated  efforts  to 
fighfc  them  and  to  soothe  his  own  terrors.  It  is  for 
that  object  that  the  divers  religious  and  philosophical 
systems  were  created,  in  which  humanity  sought  for 
consolation.  Finding  none  there,  man  turned  to 
Science,  which,  at  first,  neither  solved  his  doubts  nor 
eliminated  his  sufferings.  But  Science  provided  him 
with  rational  methods  of  research,  owing  to  which  he 
gradually  progressed  and  conquered  a  series  of  truths, 
allowing  him  gradually  to  struggle  against  some  of 
his  troubles  and  to  solve  some  of  his  problems. 
Science  has  already  done  much  to  diminish  the  diseases 
which  are  among  the  chief  scourges  of  humanity. 
It  has  thrown  light  upon  the  causes  of  many  of  them 
and  has  found  preventive  and  curative  remedies  for 
several. 

Surgery,  antiseptics,  serotherapy,  vaccinations 
already  yield  secure  results.  Hygiene  and  prophy- 
laxis are  in  course  of  development,  and  a  vast  prospect 
is  open  to  them  in  the  future.  But  our  heaviest 
burdens,  senility  and  death,  common  to  all,  have  yet 
scarcely  been  studied.  Having  expounded  his  views 
on  senility  and  proved  that  it  is  a  pathological  pheno- 
menon, Metchnikoff  concluded  that  to  struggle  against 
it  was  quite  as  possible  as  to  struggle  against  disease. 

The  principal  causes  which  bring  about  premature 
senility  are  :  alcoholism,  chronic  poisoning  by  intes- 
tinal microbes,  and  infectious  diseases,  headed  by 
syphilis.  Surely  Science  will  discover  efficacious 
means  against  all  these. 

The  strengthening  of  the  beneficent  cells  in  our 
organism ;  the  transformation  of  the  wild  intestinal 
flora  into  a  cultivated  flora,  by  the  introduction  of 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         187 

useful  microbes ;  the  struggle  against  infectious 
diseases  and  alcoholism — all  these  are  workable  means 
of  fighting  pathological  and  premature  senility. 

When  old  age  becomes  physiological  and  no  longer 
painful  it  will  become  proportionate  with  the  other 
epochs  of  our  lives  and  cease  to  alarm  us.  But  how 
is  the  fear  of  death  to  be  explained,  since  it  is  a  general 
and  inevitable  phenomenon  ?  How  is  it  that  we  have 
no  natural  instinct  for  death  ?  Metchnikoff  supposes 
that  this  lack  of  harmony  in  our  nature  comes  from 
the  fact  that  death  is  as  premature  as  senility  and 
arrives  before  the  natural  instinct  for  it  has  had  time 
to  develop.  This  supposition  is  confirmed  by  the 
fact  that  old  people  who  have  reached  an  excep- 
tionally advanced  age  are  often  satiated  with  life 
and  feel  the  need  of  death  as  we  feel  a  need  of  sleep 
after  a  long  day's  work.  That  is  why  we  have  a 
right  to  suppose  that,  when  the  limit  of  life  has  been 
extended,  owing  to  scientific  progress,  the  instinct  of 
death  will  have  time  to  develop  normally  and  will 
take  the  place  of  the  fear  which  death  provokes  at 
the  present  day.  Both  death  and  old  age  will  become 
physiological  and  the  greatest  discord  in  our  nature 
will  be  conquered. 

Our  manner  of  life  will  have  to  be  modified  and 
directed  according  to  rational  and  scientific  data  if 
we  are  to  run  through  the  normal  cycle  of  life — ortho- 
biosis.  The  pursuit  of  that  goal  will  even  influence 
the  basis  of  morals.  Orthobiosis  cannot  be  accessible 
to  all  until  knowledge,  rectitude,  and  solidarity 
increase  among  men,  and  until  social  conditions  are 
kinder. 

Man  will  then  no  longer  be  content  with  his  natural 
inheritance ;  he  will  have  to  intervene  actively  in 


188         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

order  to  correct  his  disharmonies.  "Even  as  he 
has  modified  the  nature  of  plants  and  animals  Man 
will  have  to  modify  his  own  nature  in  order  to  make 
it  more  harmonious." 

In  order  to  obtain  a  new  race,  one  forms  an  ideal 
in  relation  to  the  organism  to  be  modified.  "  In 
order  to  modify  human  nature,  it  is  necessary  to 
realise  what  is  the  ideal  in  view,  after  which  every 
resource  of  which  Science  disposes  must  be  taxed  in 
order  to  obtain  that  result.  If  an  ideal  is  possible, 
capable  of  uniting  men  in  a  sort  of  religion  of  the 
future,  it  can  only  be  based  on  scientific  principles. 
And  if  it  is  true,  as  is  so  often  affirmed,  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  live  without  faith,  that  faith  must  be 
faith  in  the  power  of  Science." 

In  those  words,  Metchnikoff  ends  his  book  on 
Human  Nature. 

The  public  at  large  and  many  critics  did  not  under- 
stand the  deep  and  general  meaning  of  Metchnikoffs 
thoughts.  They  reproached  him  with  having  an  in- 
sufficiently exalted  ideal,  for  they  only  saw  in  his 
doctrine  the  desire  of  postponing  senility  and  living 
longer.  They  did  not  understand  that  to  revolt 
against  the  lack  of  harmony  in  nature,  through  which 
all  humanity  has  to  suffer,  not  only  physically  but 
morally,  was  to  aspire  to  perfection.  They  did  not 
consider  that,  in  order  to  attain  that  end,  all  human 
culture  and  the  whole  social  state  would  have  to  be 
modified  ;  that  this  could  only  be  done  through  many 
virtues,  intense  energy,  and  great  self-control.  They 
had  not  understood  the  elevation  and  power  of  an 
ideal  which  aspired  to  perfect  not  only  the  direction 
of  life  but  human  nature  itself.  They  had  not  under- 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         189 

stood  the  audacious  beauty  of  such  a  struggle,  the 
benefit  conferred  by  the  belief  that  the  human  will 
and  the  human  mind  are  capable  of  transforming 
Evil  into  Good  according  to  a  conceived  ideal !  .  .  . 

In  the  meanwhile  Metchnikoff,  convinced  that 
Knowledge  is  Power  and  that  "  Science  alone  can 
lead  suffering  Humanity  into  the  right  path,"  quietly 
continued  his  task. 

One  of  the  most  characteristic  symptoms  of  old 
age  is  the  hardening  of  the  arteries — arterio-sclerosis. 
He  therefore  especially  wished  to  elucidate  the  mechan- 
ism of  that  phenomenon. 

Whilst  many,  yet  unknown,  factors  come  into 
play  in  senility,  one  disease,  syphilis,  often  provokes 
arterio-sclerosis,  indisputably  due  to  a  morbid  agent. 
Metchnikoff  therefore  began  to  study  this  disease, 
of  which  the  origin  is  infectious — especially  as  he 
thought  he  could  do  so  experimentally. 

Long  before  this,  he  had  conceived  the  idea  that 
the  study  of  those  human  diseases  which  cannot  be 
transmitted  to  ordinary  laboratory  animals  might  be 
carried  out  on  anthropoid  apes,  of  all  animals  the 
nearest  to  man.  He  had  spoken  of  it  to  M.  Pasteur, 
but,  at  that  time,  the  Institute  could  not  afford  to 
acquire  these  costly  animals.  In  1903,  at  the  Madrid 
Congress,  Metchnikoff  received  a  5000  fr.  prize  and 
utilised  this  money  in  the  acquisition  of  two  anthro- 
poid apes.  The  same  year  M.  Roux  won  the  Osiris 
prize  of  100,000  fr.  which  he  devoted  to  the  same 
object,  and  it  was  decided  that  the  two  together 
would  undertake  researches  on  syphilis.  Other  dona- 
tions, 30,000  fr.  from  the  Morosoffs  of  Moscow  and 
250  roubles  from  the  Society  of  Dermatology  and 


190         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Syphilography  of  the  same  city,  completed  the  capital 
required  to  execute  the  projected  plan. 

The  following  is  a  short  sketch  of  the  researches  that 
were  undertaken  and  the  results  that  were  obtained. 

The  inoculation  of  anthropoid  apes  with  syphilis 
was  successful.  The  chimpanzee  was  found  to  be 
most  sensitive  to  the  disease  ;  it  manifests  primary 
and  secondary  symptoms  identical  with  those  of 
man.  Lower  monkeys,  though  less  sensitive,  also 
contract  syphilis  but  generally  only  show  primary 
characteristic  manifestations.  The  possibility  of 
rapidly  provoking  in  apes,  even  of  the  inferior  kinds, 
syphilitic  lesions  similar  to  those  of  man  has  a  very 
great  importance,  for  it  provides  a  sure  means  of 
diagnosis  in  doubtful  human  cases.  Owing  to  the 
liability  of  apes  to  contract  syphilis,  experimental 
vaccination  and  serotherapy  could  be  attempted  on 
them ;  but,  though  these  experiments  were  sometimes 
encouraging,  the  results  obtained  were  not  constant 
enough  to  justify  their  application  to  man.  Thus, 
it  was  found  possible  to  attenuate  the  virus  by 
successive  passages  in  certain  lower  apes,  and  yet, 
though  attenuated  for  the  chimpanzee,  it  did  not 
confer  upon  him  immunity  against  the  active  virus. 

In  1905,  Schaudinn  discovered  the  syphilitic  tre- 
ponema  in  man.  By  using  this  discoverer's  method, 
the  same  microbe  was  found  in  apes  inoculated  with 
human  virus,  which  confirmed  the  specific  character 
of  the  treponema. 

An  observation  was  then  made  which  was  of  great 
importance  on  account  of  its  consequences  :  it  was 
ascertained  that  the  syphilitic  microbe  was  absorbed 
by  the  less  mobile  mononuclear  phagocytes  and  re- 
mained localised  near  the  entrance  point  long  enough 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         191 

to  allow  of  a  local  treatment  which  might  succeed 
in  being  curative  as  it  had  time  to  act  before  the 
microbes  had  passed  into  the  general  circulation  of 
the  organism.  This  supposition  was  proved  to  be 
correct  by  a  series  of  experiments  on  monkeys,  and, 
in  1906,  a  young  doctor,  M.  Maisonneuve,  inoculated 
himself  with  syphilis  and  applied  the  treatment  with 
a  perfectly  satisfactory  result. 

It  might  have  been  thought  that  this  simple,  safe, 
and  innocuous  method  would  at  once  come  into  prac- 
tice, but  it  was  not  so.  Between  opposition  on  the 
one  hand,  and  carelessness  of  the  subjects  themselves 
on  the  other,  this  useful  discovery  remained  for  a  long 
time  without  being  utilised.  All  the  above  results  were 
obtained  through  experiments  on  anthropoid  apes, 
and  the  study  of  syphilis,  until  then  purely  clinical, 
entered  at  last  into  the  field  of  experimental  science. 

Researches  upon  syphilis  were  but  an  interlude ; 
Metchnikoff,  returning  to  his  principal  work,  resumed 
the  study  of  senility  and  of  the  intestinal  flora. 
During  many  years  he  applied  himself  to  researches 
concerning  the  part  played  by  the  latter  within  the 
organism. 

He  was  able  to  confirm  the  deductions  expounded 
in  his  Etudes  sur  la  nature  humaine,  and  in  1907  he 
published  a  new  work,  Essais  optimistes,  in  which  he 
developed  the  same  ideas,  amplified  by  the  results 
of  his  new  researches,  and  answering  the  criticisms 
excited  by  his  first  book. 

In  the  Essais  optimistes  he  studied  first  of  all  the 
phenomena  of  old  age  in  the  different  grades  of  the 
scale  of  living  beings,  of  which  he  compared  the  life 
duration.  He  concluded  jjthat  there  was  an  indubit- 


192         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

able  connection  between  this  and  the  intestinal 
flora. 

The  shorter  the  intestine,  the  fewer  microbes  it 
contains  and  the  longer  the  relative  duration  of  life. 
As  an  example,  he  quoted  the  relatively  great  lon- 
gevity of  birds  and  bats.  Those  animals,  adapted  to 
aerial  life,  have  to  weigh  as  little  as  possible.  To 
that  end,  they  empty  their  intestine  very  frequently 
and  this  in  consequence  is  not  used  as  a  reservoir 
for  alimentary  refuse  ;  as  it  is  but  little  developed,  it 
contains  a  much  smaller  number  of  microbes.  The 
longevity  of  flying  animals  is  relatively  much  greater 
than  that  of  mammals  with  a  large  intestine  full  of 
microbes,  a  constant  source  of  slow  poisoning. 

After  treating  the  question  of  longevity,  Metchni- 
kofi  dealt  with  that  of  death. 

Living  beings  die,  in  the  great  majority  of  cases, 
in  consequence  of  diseases  or  accidents  with  an 
external  cause  ;  one  involuntarily  wonders  whether 
there  is  such  a  thing  as  "  natural  death,"  i.e.  arising 
exclusively  from  causes  due  to  the  organism  itself. 
A  review  of  known  facts  allowed  MetchnikofE  to  draw 
the  following  conclusions  :  unicellular  inferior  beings 
have  no  natural  death  ;  they  merely  die  by  accident. 
Their  individual  life  is  very  short  and  comes  to  an 
end  by  multiplication  or  division  of  a  unit  into  two  ; 
there  is  no  trace  of  a  corpse  in  this  loss  of  previous 
individuality. 

Among  superior  plants,  certain  trees  attain  con- 
siderable dimensions  (dragon-tree,  baobab,  oak, 
cypress),  live  for  centuries,  and  die  from  external 
causes.  Their  organism  presents  no  internal  necessity 
for  a  natural  death.  On  the  other  hand,  a  multitude 
of  other  plants  have  but  a  short  life  and  their  natural 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         193 

death  coincides  usually  with  the  ripening  of  the  seed. 
It  has  even  been  observed  that  it  is  possible  to 
retard  the  death  of  a  plant  by  preventing  it  from 
fructifying.  For  instance,  lawns  made  up  of  grass 
mown  before  it  runs  to  seed  remain  green  and  living 
whilst  grass  allowed  to  flower  and  bear  seed  becomes 
yellow  and  dries  up.  It  is  a  well-known  fact  that 
fruits  and  seeds  are  frequently  poisonous.  Therefore 
Metchnikoff  supposed  that  the  death  of  the  plant  may 
be  due  to  an  auto-intoxication  by  poisons  manu- 
factured by  it  in  order  to  defend  its  seeds  and  ensure 
the  next  generation ;  in  Nature,  the  individual  does 
not  count,  but  the  species.  Once  the  survival  of  this 
is  ensured  the  individual  may  disappear. 

A  similar  phenomenon  of  auto-intoxication  is  mani- 
fested by  lower  vegetables,  yeasts,  and  microbes. 
Pasteur,  who  discovered  the  microbe  of  lactic  fermen- 
tation, found  that  this  micro-organism,  which  itself 
produces  lactic  acid,  perishes  because  of  the  over- 
production of  this  substance.  Yeasts,  again,  cannot 
bear  an  excess  of  alcohol,  their  own  product.  Thus 
the  vegetable  kingdom  offers  us  examples  of  the 
absence  of  natural  death  as  well  as  examples  of  a 
natural  death  due  to  an  auto-intoxication  of  the 
organism. 

In  the  animal  kingdom  examples  of  natural  death 
are  also  to  be  found,  but  only  very  exceptionally. 
Those  examples  are  provided  by  Rotifera  (inferior 
worms)  and  by  Ephemeridae.  Their  adult  life  is 
reduced  to  the  sexual  act,  almost  immediately  followed 
by  death  without  an  external  cause.  Their  life  is  so 
short  that  they  do  not  even  feed  and  lack  developed 
buccal  organs.  That  in  itself  constitutes  an  organic 
cause  of  inevitable,  i.e.  natural,  death. 

o 


194          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Among  human  beings  natural  death  is  extremely 
rare.  It  sometimes  occurs  in  very  old  people,  under 
the  shape  of  a  peaceful  last  sleep.  The  likeness  it 
bears  to  sleep  is  so  striking  that  Metchnikoff  thought 
himself  authorised  to  form  the  following  hypothesis 
concerning  the  analogy  in  their  mechanism. 

According  to  a  theory  of  Preyer's,  fatigue  and  sleep 
are  due  to  a  periodical  auto-intoxication  set  up  by 
the  products  of  the  vital  activity  of  our  organism. 
These  products  are  destroyed  by  oxidation  during 
sleep,  after  which  fatigue  disappears  and  awakening 
comes.  According  to  Metchnikofi  it  may  be  that  the 
mechanism  of  natural  death  also  consists  in  an  auto- 
intoxication by  the  progressive  accumulation  of  toxic 
products  during  the  whole  of  life.  The  analogy  be- 
tween sleep  and  natural  death  allows  the  supposition 
that,  as  before  going  to  sleep  an  instinctive  desire  for 
rest  is  felt,  in  the  same  way  natural  death  must  be 
preceded  by  an  instinctive  desire  to  die.  Moreover, 
this  is  confirmed  by  concrete  examples.  Thus  that  of 
an  old  woman  of  ninety-three  who  expressed  that  desire 
in  the  following  terms  to  her  great-nephew :  "  If  ever 
you  reach  my  age,  you  will  see  that  death  becomes 
desired  just  like  sleep."  The  same  thought  had  been 
expressed  by  the  biblical  patriarchs  who  fell  asleep 
satiated  with  life. 

When,  owing  to  the  progress  of  Science,  men  reach 
the  development  of  the  instinct  of  death,  they  will 
look  upon  Death  with  the  same  calm  as  do  very  old 
people,  and  it  will  cease  to  be  one  of  the  principal 
causes  of  pessimism.  It  is  for  that  reason  that  we 
must  learn  to  prolong  life  and  to  allow  all  men  to 
realise  their  complete  and  natural  vital  cycle,  thus 
ensuring  their  moral  balance. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         195 

Psychological  observations  allowed  Metchnikoff  to 
conclude  that  pessimism  is  much  more  frequent  in 
youth  than  in  maturity  or  in  old  age.  He  attributes 
this  to  the  gradual  development  of  the  vital  instinct 
which  is  only  completely  manifested  in  middle  age. 
Man  then  begins  to  appreciate  life  ;  made  wiser  by 
experience,  he  demands  less  and  is  therefore  better 
balanced. 

Metchnikoff  proffers  examples  in  support  of  his 
theory.  He  analyses  the  psychic  evolution  of  Goethe 
as  reflected  in  his  Faust  and  describes  that  of  "an 
intimate  friend."  These  examples  prove  that  natural 
psychological  evolution  already  leads  to  a  relative 
optimism.  But,  as  long  as  senility  is  pathological  and 
death  premature,  the  apprehension  that  they  inspire 
antagonises  the  normal  evolution  of  optimism.  A 
victory  over  those  present  evils  will  direct  the  normal 
course  of  life  in  the  right  way;  one  normal  active 
period  will  succeed  another  ;  the  accomplishment  of 
individual  and  social  functions  corresponding  with 
each  period  will  become  realisable  ;  the  death  in- 
stinct will  have  time  to  develop,  and  Man,  having 
been  through  his  normal  vital  cycle,  will  sink,  peace- 
fully and  without  fear,  into  eternal  sleep. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

Researches  on  intestinal  flora — Sour  milk. 

THE  problem  of  our  intestinal  flora  is  so  vast  and  so 
difficult  that  it  demands  years  of  research.  Numerous 
facts  had  already  been  accumulated  by  Science  on 
this  subject,  but  it  was  still  far  from  being  elucidated. 

Certain  scientists  affirmed  that  microbes  favour 
digestion  by  decomposing  food  residues  in  the  intes- 
tine and  are  therefore  not  merely  useful,  but  necessary 
to  the  organism.  Others  entertained  a  diametrically 
opposed  opinion.  The  first  thing,  therefore,  was  to 
know  which  of  the  two  opinions  was  founded  on  fact. 
Metchnikoff  studied  the  case  of  the  bat,  in  which  the 
digestive  tube  is  short  and  the  large  bowel  not  even 
differentiated.  As  he  had  supposed,  a  priori,  in  this 
animal,  whose  life  duration  is  relatively  long,  the 
intestine  contains  few  or  no  micro-organisms,  which 
proves  that  digestion  can  be  accomplished  without 
their  intermediary.  Moreover,  this  was  before  long 
amply  confirmed  by  the  researches  of  MM.  Cohendy, 
Wollman,  and  other  scientists  who  succeeded  in 
bringing  up  chickens  and  tadpoles  in  conditions  of 
absolute  sterility. 

Having  acquired  the  conviction  that  microbes  are 
not  indispensable  to  digestion,  Metchnikofi  studied  the 
part  they  play  in  the  organism.  It  is  universally 
admitted  that  the  products  of  putrefaction  are  toxic, 

196 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         197 

and  lie  enquired  whether  the  intestine  sheltered 
putrefying  microbes.  This  question  had  not  yet  been 
solved  ;  certain  bacteriologists  thought  that  little  or 
no  putrefaction  exists  in  a  normal  intestine.  Metch- 
nikoff  ascertained  through  systematic  researches  that 
the  intestinal  flora  includes  several  kinds  of  putrefying 
microbes  which  secrete  highly  toxic  products. 

With  his  pupils  and  collaborators,  MM.  Berthelot 
and  Wollman,  he  carried  out  a  series  of  experiments 
which  established  the  fact  that  this  intoxication  is 
due  to  poisons  of  the  aromatic  group,  such  as  phenols 
and  indols.  With  these  substances,  they  succeeded 
in  artificially  provoking  arterio-sclerosis  in  the  organs 
of  animals,  and  also  other  modifications  similar  to 
those  which  are  observed  in  senility.  Having  proved 
that  putrefying  microbes  provoke  the  intoxication 
of  the  tissues,  Metchnikoff  set  to  work  to  find  a 
means  of  struggling  against  those  microbes. 

It  was  known  that  they  could  only  live  in  an 
alkaline  medium  which  is  precisely  that  of  the  intes- 
tinal juices.  Metchnikoff  thought  that  if  means  were 
found  to  render  the  intestinal  contents  acid,  without 
harm  being  done  to  the  organism,  the  putrefying 
microbes  might  thus  be  destroyed.  It  had  been 
known  for  a  long  time  that  sour  milk  does  not 
suffer  putrefaction,  that  being  prevented  by  the  acid 
fermentation.  The  lactic  microbes  of  this  fermenta- 
tion must  therefore  be  antagonistic  to  the  putrefy- 
ing microbes.  He  drew  a  conclusion  in  favour  of 
the  utility  of  sour  milk,  containing  acid-producing 
microbes ;  once  introduced  into  the  intestine,  these 
should  prevent  the  breeding  of  the  noxious  microbes 
which  require  an  alkaline  medium. 

His  hypothesis  seemed  confirmed  by  the  fact  that 


198         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

populations  who  feed  almost  exclusively  on  curded 
milk  live  a  very  long  time.  In  Bulgaria,  for  instance, 
whole  villages,  thus  fed,  are  known  for  the  longevity 
of  their  inhabitants.  Starting  from  these  considera- 
tions, he  made  experiments  upon  himself  and  system- 
atically introduced  into  his  diet  sour  milk  carefully 
prepared  with  pure  cultures  of  certain  lactic  bacilli. 
His  health  was  benefited  by  it,  and  his  friends  followed 
his  example.  Certain  doctors  recommended  sour 
milk,  the  use  of  which  gradually  spread  as  a  hygienic 
food.  Metchnikoff  considered  the  result  acquired  as 
a  first  step  towards  the  artificial  transformation  of 
the  wild  intestinal  flora  into  a  cultivated  and  useful 
flora. 

Unfortunately,  the  study  of  the  intestinal  flora  is 
extremely  complicated  because  of  the  innumerable 
species  of  micro-organisms  and  the  extreme  difficulty 
of  disentangling  the  many  influences  which  cross  each 
other.  He  therefore  considered  collective  researches 
as  indispensable,  the  life  and  science  of  one  man  being 
insufficient  to  solve  so  vast  a  problem.  Up  to  a 
certain  point  he  succeeded  in  realising  this  scientific 
collaboration  within  his  own  laboratory. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 

The  Nobel  Prize — Journey  to  Sweden  and  to  Russia — A  day  with 
Leon  Tolstoi. 

IN  1908  Metchnikoff  received  the  Nobel  Prize,  together 
with  Ehrlich,  for  his  researches  on  immunity.  Accord- 
ing to  the  statutes  of  that  prize,  the  laureate  is  invited 
to  give  a  lecture  in  Stockholm.  Metchnikoff  chose  for 
his  theme  the  "  present  state  of  the  question  of  im- 
munity in  infectious  diseases,"  and,  in  the  spring  of 
1909,  we  went  to  Sweden  and  thence  to  Russia.  The 
whole  journey  was  a  series  of  fetes  and  receptions  in 
his  honour.  He  was  touched  and  grateful  at  this 
welcome,  but  with  his  usual  humour,  declared  that 
it  was  the  Nobel  Prize  which,  like  a  magic  wand, 
had  revealed  to  the  public  the  value  of  his  researches. 

We  only  stopped  for  a  short  time  at  Stockholm, 
where  the  kindest  hospitality  was  shown  to  Metch- 
nikoff. Sweden  made  an  unforgettable  impression 
upon  us.  Her  deep,  dark  waters,  wild  rocks,  and 
sombre  pines  make  of  it  a  land  of  legends.  Elie  was 
impressed  not  only  by  Nature  in  Scandinavia  but 
also  by  Scandinavian  Art,  which  reproduces  it  admir- 
ably. He  was  specially  pleased  with  Lilienfiorse's 
pictures,  representing  animals  against  a  background 
at  the  same  time  real  and  legendary. 

We  went  to  Russia  by  way  of  the  Baltic.  The 
nights  at  that  time  were  "  white,"  and  rocky  islands 


200         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

covered  with  pines  emerged  from  the  sea  like  ghosts, 
in  the  mysterious  silvery  midnight  light ;  the  im- 
pression was  fairy-like. 

A  warm  welcome  awaited  Metchnikofi  in  Russia. 
At  Petersburg,  as  in  Moscow,  he  was  received  with 
cordial  and  enthusiastic  sympathy  not  only  by  scien- 
tific and  medical  societies,  but  by  all  the  intellectual 
youth  of  those  cities.  This  warm  reception  contri- 
buted to  efface  the  bitterness  sometimes  aroused  in 
him  by  distant  recollections  of  the  reasons  which 
caused  him  to  leave  his  native  country. 

During  our  stay  in  Russia  we  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  our  great  writer,  Leon  Tolstoi.  We  spent  a 
day  with  him  in  his  estate,  lasnaia  Paliana,  and  the 
day  left  a  lifelong  impression  upon  us. 

It  was  at  dawn  that  we  reached  the  little  railway 
station  where  a  carriage  had  come  to  meet  us.  It 
had  been  raining  in  the  night  and  now,  in  the  first 
morning  light,  everything  shone  with  dew.  We  were 
excited  by  the  sight  of  the  Russian  country,  cool 
meadows,  forest,  fields,  all  that  simple  landscape  that 
we  had  not  seen  for  so  long,  and  we  were  also  greatly 
moved  at  the  idea  of  meeting  Tolstoi. 

The  village  appeared  in  the  distance  and,  a  little 
way  apart,  the  wide  open  entrance  gate  of  the  old 
park  of  lasnaia  Paliana.  We  entered  a  long  shady 
avenue  leading  to  the  home  of  Tolstoi.  The  spring 
was  at  its  best,  flowers  and  perfumes  everywhere. 
The  house  and  the  old  park  had  the  poetic  charm  of 
the  ancient  "  nests  of  nobility  "  in  Russia. 

Tolstoi's  daughter  greeted  us  on  the  steps ;  her 
kindly  simplicity  at  once  put  us  at  our  ease.  We 
had  hardly  entered  the  vestibule  when  we  saw  Leon 
Tolstoi  himself  coming  down  the  stairs  with  a  brisk 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         201 

step.  We  knew  him  at  once,  though  he  seemed  to 
us  different  from  all  his  portraits.  We  were  first  of 
all  struck  by  his  eyes,  deep,  piercing,  and  yet  as  clear 
as  those  of  a  child.  He  had  nothing  of  that  hard- 
ness and  severity  that  one  is  accustomed  to  see  in  his 
portraits  ;  his  features,  too,  seemed  to  us  much  finer 
and  more  idealised.  He  looked  straight  into  our  eyes 
as  if  he  wished  to  read  the  depths  of  our  souls.  But 
we  were  at  once  reassured  by  the  kind  and  benevolent 
expression  of  his  whole  face.  He  looked  strong  and 
healthy  and  did  not  seem  old,  but  full  of  inner  life. 
After  the  first  words  of  welcome,  he  said  to  us,  "  You 
resemble  each  other ;  that  happens  after  living 
happily  together  for  a  long  time."  He  questioned  us 
concerning  our  journey  and  on  the  impression  made 
upon  us  by  Russia  after  our  long  absence  ;  then  he 
said  he  had  to  finish  his  morning  task. 

His  daughter  and  son  took  us  for  a  walk  through 
the  park  and  the  village,  and  the  friendly  words  they 
exchanged  with  the  peasants  indicated  excellent 
relations  between  the  villagers  and  the  people  of  the 
chateau.  As  soon  as  we  came  in,  Leon  Tolstoi  re- 
appeared, declaring  that  he  gave  himself  holiday  for 
the  day.  He  questioned  Metchnikoff  on  his  researches, 
on  the  present  state  of  hygiene,  and  on  the  application 
of  scientific  discoveries.  He  listened  attentively  and 
with  visible  interest.  At  the  end  of  the  conversation 
he  declared  that  it  was  quite  erroneously  that  he  was 
thought  to  be  hostile  to  Science,  and  that  he  only 
denounced  pseudo-science,  which  has  nothing  to  do 
with  human  welfare.  "  In  reality,"  he  said,  "  you  and 
I  are  aiming  towards  the  same  goal  by  different  lines." 

All  his  words  were  impregnated  with  a  deep 
love  for,  and  an  ardent  desire  to  serve,  humanity. 


202         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Literature  and  Art  were  mentioned  ;  Tolstoi  said 
that  lie  was  now  so  far  from  it  all  that  he  had 
even  forgotten  some  of  his  own  works  and  appreciated 
them  much  less  than  his  writings  on  spiritual  ques- 
tions. He  thought  that  sometimes  beauty  of  form 
acted  at  the  expense  of  the  moral  bearing  of  the  sub- 
ject. To  the  objection  that  Art  embellishes  Life,  he 
answered  that  it  has  some  value  in  that  it  serves  as 
a  link  between  men  and  makes  them  purer,  but  that 
its  moral  importance  surpasses  its  aesthetic  value  by  a 
great  deal. 

He  related  that  he  had  conceived  a  new  work  on 
the  social  movement  in  Russia  and,  a  propos  of  that, 
the  conversation  fell  upon  political  reprisals.  The 
subject  of  deportations,  prisons,  and  executions  was 
visibly  painful  to  him ;  his  eyes,  now  sad  and  suffering, 
revealed  his  vibrating  soul. 

On  the  agrarian  question,  he  was  in  favour  of  the 
nationalisation  of  land,  and  showed  great  enthusiasm 
for  Henry  George.  He  thought  the  suppression  of 
the  commune  in  Russia  a  great  mistake.  Metchnikoff 
explained  to  him  that  his  personal  observations  in 
Little  Russia  spoke,  on  the  contrary,  in  favour  of 
individual  property,  which  gave  better  agricultural 
results.  Tolsto'i  manifested  perfect  tolerance,  and 
conversation  flowed  on  peacefully  concerning  various 
subjects.  In  everything  he  said  the  beauty  and  eleva- 
tion of  his  soul  was  perceptible. 

After  lunch  he  desired  to  have  a  serious  conversa- 
tion with  Metchnikoff  and  took  him  out  driving,  he 
himself  holding  the  reins.  On  the  way  he  returned  to 
the  question  of  Science.  He  thought  that  humanity 
was  so  overwhelmed  with  misery  and  had  so  many 
urgent  questions  to  solve  that  work  ought  to  be 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         203 

turned  in  that  direction,  and  that  we  had  no  right  to 
busy  ourselves  with  abstract  questions  unrelated  to 
life.  "  What  good  can  it  do  man  to  have  a  notion 
of  the  weight  and  dimensions  of  the  planet  Mars  ?  " 
he  said. 

MetchnikofT  answered  that  theory  is  much  nearer 
to  life  than  it  seems,  and  that  many  benefits  have  been 
acquired  for  humanity  by  scientific  observations  of 
an  abstract  order.  Thus,  the  discovery  of  the  great 
unchanging  laws  of  Nature  give  to  Man  the  conscious- 
ness of  being  submitted  to  logical  laws  instead  of 
an  arbitrary  force,  and  that  is  a  benefit.  When 
microbes  were  discovered,  their  part  in  human  life 
was  not  suspected,  and  yet  this  discovery  was  after- 
wards of  the  greatest  service  to  human  welfare  since 
it  enabled  man  to  fight  against  disease. 

On  the  way  back,  Tolstoi  gave  his  place  to  his  son 
and  himself  returned  on  horseback,  an  exercise  in 
which  he  indulged  almost  daily,  in  spite  of  the 
approach  of  his  eighty  years.  He  still  rode 
splendidly,  sitting  quite  upright,  and  seemed  even 
younger  than  before. 

After  that  he  went  to  take  a  little  rest,  whilst 
Countess  Tolstoi  gave  us  immense  pleasure  by  reading 
to  us  two  yet  unpublished  works  by  her  husband, 
the  charming  story  After  the  Ball  and  the  tragic 
Sergius  the  Monk. 

In  the  late  afternoon  a  friend  of  our  host,  an 
accomplished  musician,  sat  at  the  piano  and  played 
some  Chopin.  In  the  spring  twilight  the  charm  of 
that  music  rilled  us  with  emotion.  Leon  Tolstoi", 
seated  in  an  armchair,  listened  ;  the  lyrical  beauty  of 
the  sound  sank  deeper  and  deeper  into  his  soul,  his 
eyes  became  veiled  with  tears,  he  leant  his  forehead 


204         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

on  his  hand  and  remained  motionless.  Metchnikoff 
also  was  deeply  moved,  and  the  effect  of  music  on 
two  such  men,  the  pleasure  that  it  gave  them,  was 
the  strongest  plea  in  favour  of  pure  Art. 

"  I  do  not  know  what  takes  place  in  my  mind 
when  I  listen  to  Chopin,"  said  Tolstoi  a  few  moments 
later,  after  the  closing  sounds  had  vanished,  "  Chopin 
and  Mozart  move  me  to  the  depths.  What  lyrism ! 
what  purity  !  "  Metchnikoff  liked  Mozart  and  Beet- 
hoven, but  Tolstoi  thought  Beethoven  too  compli- 
cated. As  to  Wagner  and  modern  music,  they  both 
agreed  about  it,  thinking  it  unintelligible  and  lacking 
harmony  and  simplicity. 

Around  the  tea-table  conversation  turned  on 
senility,  and  Metchnikoff  developed  his  theory  of  the 
discords  of  human  nature.  He  illustrated  his  affirma- 
tions by  the  example  of  Goethe's  Faust,  who,  accord- 
ing to  him,  formed  the  best  picture  of  the  evolution 
of  human  phases.  To  his  mind  the  second  part  of 
Faust  is  but  an  allegory  of  the  disharmonies  of  old  age. 
It  is  a  striking  picture  of  the  dramatic  contest  between 
the  yet  ardent  and  juvenile  feelings  of  old  Goethe 
and  his  physical  senility.  Tolstoi  seemed  interested 
by  this  interpretation  and  said  he  would  read  the 
second  part  of  Faust  over  again,  but  that  he  himself 
would  never  offer  an  example  of  a  similar  lack  of 
harmony.  A  propos  of  Metchnikoff's  theory,  accord- 
ing to  which  the  fear  of  death  exists  because  Death 
itself  is  premature,  Tolstoi  affirmed  that  he  had  no 
fear  of  death,  but  added,  laughingly,  that  he  would 
nevertheless  try  to  reach  the  age  of  100  in  order  to 
please  Elie. 

Our  train  only  left  late  in  the  night,  and,  until  we 
started,  the  conversation  never  ceased  to  be  animated. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         205 

In  every  one  of  his  words  Tolstoi's  exalted  soul  was 
perceptible,  a  soul  in  which  there  was  room  but  for 
preoccupations  of  a  spiritual  order.  He  would  have 
given  the  impression  of  floating  above  the  earth  if 
his  ardent  and  compassionate  heart  had  not  constantly 
brought  him  back  to  the  miseries  and  faults  of 
human  beings.  The  atmosphere  around  him  was 
pure  and  vivifying  as  on  high  peaks,  and  the  place 
seemed  sanctified  by  his  presence. 

That  interview  had  been  a  meeting  of  two  superior 
minds,  two  exalted  souls,  but  how  different !  The 
one,  scientific  and  rational,  always  leaning  on  solid 
facts  in  order  to  soar  and  to  spread  his  wings  in  the 
highest  spheres  of  thought ;  the  other  an  artist  and 
a  mystic,  rising  through  intuition  to  the  same  spiritual 
heights  ;  both  pursuing  the  same  goal  of  human  per- 
fection and  happiness,  but  going  along  such  different 
roads.  .  .  . 

As  we  took  leave  of  him,  Leon  Tolstoi  said,  "  Not 
farewell,  but  au  revoir  !  "  And  as  we  sat  in  the 
carriage  and  started  to  go,  he  appeared  in  a  lighted 
window,  as  in  an  aureola,  waving  his  hand,  "  Au 
revoir,  au  revoir !  "  he  repeated  for  the  last  time. 
.  .  .  The  night  was  calm  and  beautiful  under  the  im- 
mensity of  the  starry  vault,  and  its  greatness  was 
confounded  in  our  souls  with  the  greatness  of  Leon 
Tolstoi. 


CHAPTER  XXX 

Intestinal  flora — Infantile  cholera — Typhoid  fever — Articles  on  popular 
Science. 

WHEN  he  returned  home,  Metchnikoff  immediately 
resumed  his  work.  He  continued,  with  his  colla- 
borators, researches  on  the  normal  intestinal  flora 
and  on  the  microbian  poisons  which  provoke  arterio- 
sclerosis. 

They  were  able  to  ascertain  that  certain  microbes 
of  the  intestinal  flora,  such  as  the  bacillus  coli  and 
Welch's  bacillus,  produce  poisons  (phenol  and  indol) 
which  are  reabsorbed  by  the  normal  intestinal  walls 
and  which  provoke  arterio-sclerosis  and  other  lesions 
of  the  organs.  A  part  of  those  poisons  is  eliminated 
by  the  urine,  and  the  quantity  found  therein  allows 
one  to  estimate  the  quantity  contained  in  the 
organism.  An  exclusively  vegetarian  or  carnivorous 
diet  increases  its  production,  while  a  mixed  diet 
reduces  it.  During  the  rest  of  his  life  MetchnikofE 
made  systematic  and  periodical  analysis  of  his  own 
urine  in  correlation  with  his  diet. 

From  certain  facts  and  certain  experiments  he  con- 
cluded that  the  reciprocal  influence  of  microbes  might 
be  utilised  to  attenuate  or  to  eliminate  the  noxious 
action  of  some  of  them.  Thus,  by  cultivating  the 
lactic  bacillus  in  the  presence  of  those  microbes  which 
produce  poisons  belonging  to  the  aromatic  group,  the 

206 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         207 

decrease  in  quantity  and  even  the  disappearance  of 
phenol  and  indol  is  observed.  All  those  facts  con- 
firmed anterior  results  which  Metchnikoff  had  ob- 
tained, and  indicated  the  route  to  be  followed  in  his 
struggle  against  those  toxins  which  gradually  poison 
the  organism  and  induce  premature  senility. 

Having  thus  elucidated  certain  questions  concern- 
ing the  part  played  by  microbes  in  a  normal  organism, 
he  studied  the  pathogenic  intestinal  flora.  He  began 
by  infantile  cholera  because  this  question  is  simplified 
by  the  fact  that  new-born  children  are  fed  exclusively 
on  milk.  It  was  then  believed  by  practitioners  that 
this  intestinal  disease  of  infants  came  from  their 
mode  of  feeding,  from  summer  heat,  and  other  external 
influences.  Metchnikoff,  however,  succeeded  in  demon- 
strating that  the 'contents  of  the  intestines  of  infants 
suffering  from  "  cholera  "  always  included  a  special 
kind  of  microbe,  the  B.  proteus  ;  he  was  also  able  to 
give  the  disease  to  young  anthropoid  apes  by  making 
them  ingest  food  soiled  by  the  intestinal  contents 
of  sick  infants,  thus  establishing  the  infectious  char- 
acter of  infantile  cholera. 

He  then  attacked  another  intestinal  disease, 
typhoid  fever,  of  which  the  microbe  (Eberth's  bacillus) 
had  been  known  for  some  time,  but  had  not  been 
studied  experimentally,  ordinary  laboratory  animals 
being  refractory.  Metchnikoff  had  again  recourse  to 
anthropoids,  and  succeeded  in  infecting  a  chimpanzee 
by  making  him  eat  food  soiled  by  the  intestinal  con- 
tents of  a  typhoid  patient. 

With  the  collaboration  of  Dr.  Besredka,  he  under- 
took a  series  of  experiments  on  anthropoid  apes  and 
on  macaques.  The  former  alone  took  typical  typhoid 
fever,  similar  to  that  of  man.  It  could  be  given  them 


208         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

by  pure  cultures  of  Eberth's  bacillus,  which  definitely 
confirmed  the  specificity  of  that  microbe. 

Antityphoid  vaccination  by  means  of  killed  bacilli 
not  being  at  that  time  either  safe  or  durable,  Metch- 
nikofE  advised  measures  of  simple  preventive  hygiene  : 
the  use  of  cooked  food,  great  personal  cleanliness, 
cleanliness  of  streets  and  dwellings,  and  the  destruction 
of  insects,  especially  flies,  which  often  infect  food. 
In  order  to  popularise  these  notions,  he  wrote  a  series 
of  articles  in  newspapers.  Later,  several  scientists 
found  efficacious  means  of  vaccination  against  typhoid 
fever. 

In  1912  Metchnikoff,  in  collaboration  with  Dr. 
Besredka  (the  author  of  the  antityphoid  vaccination 
method  by  means  of  sensitised  bacilli),  demon- 
strated on  anthropoid  apes  that  antityphoid  vaccina- 
tion by  living  sensitised  microbes  is  certain,  and 
that  it  presents  no  danger  of  diffusing  the  disease,  for 
these  microbes,  harmless  to  the  vaccinated  individual, 
cannot  prove  a  source  of  danger  for  his  entourage, 
since  they  are  phagocyted  at  the  very  place  where 
they  are  inoculated. 

MetchnikofE  always  considered  that  it  was  very 
useful  to  keep  the  public  at  large  informed  of  the 
results  acquired  by  Science,  because  "it  is  only  by 
becoming  a  part  of  daily  life  that  measures  of  hygiene 
and  prophylaxis  will  have  efficacious  results."  He 
therefore  lost  no  opportunity  of  spreading  scientific 
principles  and  facts.  In  1908  he  had  given  in  Berlin 
a  lecture  on  "  The  Curative  Forces  of  the  Organism." 
In  a  Russian  review,  the  Messenger  of  Europe,  he 
developed  the  same  subject  and  included  an  epitome 
of  his  lecture  in  Stockholm  on  immunity.  In  that 
article  he  expounded  the  phagocyte  theory  of  im- 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         209 

munity.  Among  concrete  examples  of  its  application, 
he  quoted  the  indications  concerning  the  evolution  of 
an  infectious  disease  provided  by  the  quantity  of 
leucocytes  in  the  blood,  and  the  process  employed 
by  certain  surgeons  to  diminish  the  danger  of  infec- 
tion during  an  operation  :  just  as,  in  case  of  an  enemy 
menace,  the  Government  mobilise  an  army,  certain 
surgeons  employ  divers  means  to  attract  an  army  of 
phagocytes  and  to  stimulate  their  activity  in  case 
any  microbes  should  penetrate  into  the  wound. 

In  1909  he  gave  another  lecture  at  Stuttgart,  "  A 
Conception  of  Nature  and  of  Medical  Science,"  in 
which  he  summed  up  his  two  works  fctudes  sur  la 
nature  humaine  and  Essais  optimistes.  The  title 
of  this  lecture  was  intended  to  emphasise  his  view  of 
human  nature,  according  to  which  "  Man,  as  he 
appeared  on  the  earth,  is  an  animal  and  pathological 
being  belonging  to  the  realm  of  medicine."  But  he 
ended  his  paper  by  the  same  optimistic  thought  which 
illumines  the  whole  philosophy  of  his  later  years. 
"  With  the  help  of  Science,  Man  can  correct  the  im- 
perfections of  his  nature." 

He  unveiled  these  imperfections  and  the  ills  which 
proceed  from  them,  not  only  from  a  love  of  truth  or 
scientific  honesty,  but  always  with  the  object  of 
rinding  means  to  combat  them.  He  never  allowed 
sight  to  be  lost  of  the  fact  that  Science  lights  up 
the  tortuous  and  painful  path  which  leads  to  an  issue 
that  suffering  humanity  will  find  by  gradually  widen- 
ing the  limits  of  knowledge  with  the  help  of  Work  and 

of  wm. 

Thus  all  his  writings  offer  us  encouragement  and 
support. 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

A  bacteriological  expedition  to  the  Kalmuk  steppes,  1911. 

DURING  his  preceding  journeys  in  the  Kalmuk  steppes, 
Metchnikoff  had  often  heard  it  said  that  tuberculosis 
was  almost  unknown  there,  but  that  the  Kalmuks 
took  it  very  easily  when  brought  into  contact  with 
foreigners.  As  all  means  of  combating  this  disease 
had  hitherto  given  very  unsatisfactory  results,  Metch- 
nikoff thought  that  researches  should  be  started  along 
a  new  path.  He  had  long  thought  that  observations 
on  the  extreme  liability  of  Kalmuks  to  tuberculosis 
might  perhaps  provide  some  new  data.  But  the 
study  of  the  question  necessitated  a  very  distant 
journey  which  he  now  at  last  had  the  opportunity  of 
realising. 

According  to  Metchnikoff  s  hypothesis,  a  natural 
vaccination  takes  place  among  us  against  tuberculosis 
which  would  explain  the  resistance  of  the  majority 
of  human  beings  in  spite  of  the  enormous  diffusion 
of  the  disease.  He  concluded  that  some  attenuated 
breeds  of  microbes  become  introduced  into  our 
organism  during  our  childhood,  thus  vaccinating  us 
against  the  virulent  tuberculous  bacillus.  This  sup- 
position seemed  to  him  plausible,  for  he  had  long 
ago  found  that  some  micro-organisms  (Cienkovsky's 
bacillus,  the  cholera  bacillus,  etc.)  become  modified 
in  different  environment  and  conditions,  both  in  form 
210 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         211 

and  in  virulence.  He  had  described  this  phenomenon 
in  1888  in  a  memoir  entitled  Pkomorphism  of 
Microbes.  His  hypothesis  would  explain  the  liability 
of  the  Kalmuks,  since,  if  no  tuberculous  bacilli 
existed  in  the  steppes,  the  inhabitants  could  not 
acquire  a  natural  vaccination.  When  placed  in  an 
environment  which  was  not  free  from  tuberculosis, 
they  became  infected  very  easily,  being  in  no  wise 
prepared  for  the  struggle  against  the  virus. 

The  expedition  to  the  Kalmuk  country  was  there- 
fore planned  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  tuber- 
culosis was  really  absent  from  the  steppes.  This  could 
easily  be  done  by  Pirquet's  test,1  which  at  the  same 
time  would  show  whether  the  number  of  Kalmuks 
infected  increased  from  the  centre  to  the  outer  limit 
of  the  steppes  and  corresponded  with  the  greater 
degree  of  contact  with  the  surrounding  population. 
If  the  enquiry  confirmed  the  hypothesis,  there  would 
remain  to  be  seen  which  microbes  might  best  be  used 
as  vaccines. 

The  expedition  was  also  intended  to  elucidate  a 
few  questions  on  the  etiology  of  endemic  plague  in 
the  Kirghiz  steppes.  When  this  intention  became 
known,  the  Russian  authorities  desired  to  add  to  it 
a  local  mission  on  the  study  of  plague  epidemics  in 
the  steppes.  Metchnikofi,  who  was  chiefly  concerned 
with  the  question  of  tuberculosis,  was  only  able  to 
draw  up  a  plan  of  work  for  the  Russian  mission  and 
to  start  it  going  in  one  of  the  plague  centres. 

The  Pasteur  Institute  expeditionary  party  com- 
prised, besides  Metchnikofl,  MM.  Burnet,  Salimbeni, 
and  lamanouchi.  They  were  joined  at  Moscow  by 

1  A  cutaneous  scarification  by  tuberculin  which  provokes  local  inflam- 
matory redness  on  the  scarified  point  in  tuberculous  subjects  only. 


212         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Drs.  Tarassevitch  and  Choukevitch,  and  at  Astrakhan 
by  the  physicians  of  the  Russian  plague  mission. 
The  Institut  Pasteur  party  left  Paris  on  May  14,  1911, 
full  of  spirits  ;  Metchnikoff,  eager  to  make  the  journey 
pleasant  for  his  companions,  was  doing  the  honours 
of  his  country  to  the  best  of  his  ability  ;  he  fully 
succeeded,  owing  to  the  warm  welcome  and  liberal 
hospitality  which  they  received  in  Russia,  where 
every  one  tried  to  contribute  not  only  to  the  success 
of  the  expedition  but  to  the  comfort  and  pleasure 
of  its  members.  The  latter,  indeed,  preserved  a  most 
pleasant  recollection  of  this  journey,  and,  in  later 
years,  always  spoke  of  it  with  pleasure. 

Navigation  on  the  Volga  from  Nijni  Novgorod  to 
Astrakhan  was  full  of  peculiar  charm.  That  five  days' 
journey  was  one  of  the  rare  periods  of  complete 
rest  in  Metchnikoff 's  life.  He  indulged  in  the  dolce 
far  niente  as  he  watched  the  peaceful  landscape  on 
the  passing  banks.  The  Volga,  then  in  flood,  covered 
immense  spaces.  Here  and  there,  whole  forests 
emerged  from  the  river  which  reflected  them  as  in  an 
enchanted  dream.  From  time  to  time,  little  isolated 
villages  appeared  with  the  gilt  cupola  of  a  church 
or  a  monastery,  then  meadows,  forests,  steep  cliffs, 
or  gentle  slopes  down  to  the  river.  What  poetry, 
what  grandeur  in  simplicity !  As  in  a  kaleidoscope, 
types  of  varied  populations  and  pictures  of  local 
customs  followed  upon  each  other. 

Along  the  banks  now  and  then  were  seen  proces- 
sions of  pilgrims.  Their  humble,  gray,  stooping 
figures  breathed  deep  faith  and  resignation.  Some- 
times popular  songs  arose  from  the  Volga,  sad, 
expressive,  soul-penetrating  chants. 

This  contemplative  quietude  was  only  interrupted 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          213 

by  stations  in  the  ports  of  large  towns  where  deputa- 
tions of  the  educated  inhabitants  came  to  wish  the 
mission  welcome.  These  functions  had  a  cordial 
and  touching  character,  for  it  was  obvious  that  such 
enthusiastic  demonstrations  had  for  their  source  a 
sincere  cult  for  the  knowledge  whose  representatives 
were  being  feted ;  it  was  touching  to  see  such  a  living 
ideal  in  this  distant  and  oppressed  land. 

At  Tsaritsine,  several  Kirghiz  embarked  on  our 
boat  in  order  to  go  to  a  large  fair  which  the  inhabitants 
of  the  steppes  attended  in  numbers.  Metchnikoff 
thought  this  was  a  unique  opportunity  to  learn  whether 
there  were  any  carriers  of  the  plague  bacillus  among 
those  many  natives  coming  from  all  parts  of  the  steppes. 
He  therefore  decided  that  those  members  of  the  ex- 
pedition who  had  come  to  study  plague  would  go  to 
the  fair  with  the  Kirghiz,  whilst  he,  with  the  rest  of 
the  expedition,  would  make  observations  on  the 
Kalmuks  of  the  Astrakhan  region. 

A  most  hospitable  welcome  awaited  us  there ;  people 
vied  with  each  other  in  their  efforts  to  assist  the 
expedition.  The  Governor-General  of  Astrakhan  had 
ordered  all  preparations  to  be  made,  and  the  mission 
was  provided  not  only  with  necessaries  but  with  com- 
forts which  did  much  to  alleviate  the  fatigue  of  the 
long  journey. 

Whilst  waiting  for  our  companions,  we  had  time 
to  verify  several  diagnostical  reactions,  the  Kalmuks 
lending  themselves  willingly  to  the  operation.  We 
heard  later  that  they  thought  they  were  being  vac- 
cinated against  small-pox,  a  disease  much  feared  in 
the  steppes. 

As  soon  as  the  plague  mission  arrived,  we  started 
towards  the  Kirghiz  steppes,  for  there  was  a  plague 


214         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

centre  north  of  the  Caspian  Sea.  When  we  were  out 
at  sea,  an  intense  north  wind  began  to  blow  the  waves 
away  from  the  Kirghiz  bank,  and  soon  the  depth 
lessened  to  such  an  extent  that  we  could  make  no 
progress.  The  sailors  were  perpetually  making  sound- 
ings, and  their  repeated  cries  of  "  Two  and  a  half  feet ! " 
became  a  regular  nightmare.  The  situation  seemed 
critical,  and  returning  to  Astrakhan  was  suggested ; 
an  idea  which  infuriated  Metchnikoff ;  he  would  not 
hear  of  it.  At  last,  after  several  incidents  we  reached 
the  Kirghiz  bank,  the  crossing  having  lasted  three 
days  instead  of  the  usual  twenty-three  hours. 

As  we  arrived,  we  could  see  from  afar  a  sort  of 
Valkyries'  ride  of  natives  clad  in  brilliant  colours  and 
riding  up  at  full  gallop  with  wild  cries  and  exclama- 
tions. Before  us  spread  a  barren  and  sandy  steppe, 
producing  the  sad  impression  of  a  land  forsaken  by 
God  and  man.  How  could  life  be  possible  there  ? 
But  gradually,  as  we  became  captivated  by  the  charm 
of  the  boundless  space,  the  purity  of  the  air,  the 
harmonious  colouring  and  the  scent  of  wild  heliotrope 
and  wormwood  which  alone  can  grow  in  those  sands, 
we  began  to  understand  that  it  was  not  only  possible 
to  live  in  those  steppes,  but  also  to  love  them. 

The  plague  centre  stood  among  sandy  hills  with 
low-growing  grass ;  the  summit  of  one  of  them  was 
black  with  charred  remains  of  burnt  objects ;  the 
corpses  were  buried  in  the  same  place.  Only  a  few 
wretched  forsaken  hovels  remained.  In  order  to 
throw  light  upon  endemic  plague  in  the  steppes,  it 
was  first  of  all  necessary  to  ascertain  whether  the 
plague  microbes  remained  alive  for  some  time  in 
places  where  the  scourge  had  raged ;  if  they  were 
preserved  in  dead  bodies  which  had  been  singed 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         215 

rather  than  burnt ;  if  the  worms,  insects,  rodents,  and 
domestic  animals  on  the  spot  were  or  were  not  carriers 
of  the  plague  microbe,  and  could  or  could  not  transmit 
it  to  a  distance  from  the  initial  focus. 

After  organising  a  small  emergency  laboratory, 
the  corpses  were  exhumed,  and  Dr.  Salimbeni  made 
a  post-mortem  examination.  These  corpses,  having 
been  in  the  ground  for  three  months,  were  in  a  state 
of  advanced  decomposition  and  contained  no  living 
microbes. 

Having  set  the  work  of  the  plague  mission  going, 
Metchnikoff  parted  from  it  in  order  to  accomplish 
the  projected  investigations  on  tuberculosis  in  the 
Kalmuk  steppes.  He  made  a  very  solemn  entry 
into  these  steppes  ;  a  Kalmuk  deputation  welcomed 
the  mission  and  presented  Metchnikofi  with  a  bronze 
Buddha. 

The  aspect  of  those  natives  is  sad  and  humble, 
their  movements  are  slow,  their  eyes  dull.  In  this 
they  contrast  with  their  neighbours,  the  quick  and 
intelligent  Kirghiz,  and  one  reason  for  it  is  that  the 
latter,  being  Moslems,  absorb  no  alcohol,  while  the 
Kalmuks  consume  fermented  milk  (alcoholic  fer- 
mentation) which  poisons  them  slightly  but  con- 
tinuously ;  this  observation  had  already  been  made 
by  Metchnikoff  at  the  time  of  his  previous  visit. 

The  Kalmuks  live  in  tents  covered  with  coarse 
felt ;  they  transport  these  dwellings  on  camels  from 
one  place  to  another  when  their  herds  of  sheep  or 
horses  have  consumed  the  scanty  pasture  grass 
around  the  camp.  There  is  no  attempt  at  cultivation, 
and  the  steppes  become  more  and  more  barren  as 
the  pastures  become  exhausted.  In  order  to  remedy 
this  evil,  the  Russian  administration  has  begun 


216         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

various  experimental  plantations.  In  some  places 
the  steppes  are  covered  with  small  tamarisk  bushes 
or  with  silky  grass,  but,  as  a  rule,  the  chief  growth  is 
of  silver  wormwood.  The  monotony  is  not  so  great  as 
one  might  think,  for  the  steppes,  like  a  mirror,  reflect 
all  the  divers  light-changes,  and  wonderful  natural 
phenomena  take  place  there.  During  the  great  heat, 
mirages  are  to  be  seen  in  the  distance — a  river,  lakes, 
reed-grown  shores ;  sometimes  a  sand-storm  super- 
venes, more  infernal  than  fairy-like,  called  here 
"  smertch."  The  wind  raises  the  sand  in  tongues  of 
flames  or  in  funnels  running  up  to  the  sky  with  giddy 
rapidity.  Gradually,  all  the  separate  turmoils  join 
in  a  gigantic  wall  of  sand,  advancing  in  an  orgy  of 
movement ;  the  heavy  clouds  fall  towards  the 
ground,  the  sand  rushes  upwards,  everything  becomes 
confounded  in  darkness  and  chaos. 

One  feels  so  entirely  in  the  power  of  natural  forces 
that  the  fatalism  of  the  poor  inhabitants  of  the  land 
is  easily  understood.  The  Kalmuks,  primitive  and 
nomadic,  produce  the  impression  of  ghosts  from 
distant  "centuries. 

Metchnikoff  noticed  that  since  his  last  visit  in 
1874,  fatal  influences  had  worked  havoc  on  the 
population.  Four  scourges,  all  of  them  coming  from 
outside,  are  destroying  the  Kalmuks :  syphilis, 
alcoholism,  tuberculosis,  and  the  Russians  who  are 
constantly  pushing  them  back.  Those  poor  people 
realise  the  fate  which  is  awaiting  them,  and  resign 
themselves  like  a  sick  man  who  knows  his  sickness 
to  be  incurable. 

The  spiritual  life  of  the  Kalmuks  reduces  itself  to 
their  religious  cult.  There  are  many  Buddhist  con- 
vents where  children  are  being  brought  up  for  a 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         217 

monastic  life.  Religious  rites  are  performed  by 
priests  dressed  in  purple  and  brilliant  yellow ;  for 
the  uninitiated,  their  part  consists  in  unrolling  inter- 
minable bands  on  which  prayers  are  inscribed,  and 
in  executing  a  religious  music  which  seemed  a  mixture 
of  a  camel's  grunt,  a  dog's  howling,  and  an  infinitely 
sad  plaint.  Of  the  pure  cult  of  Buddha,  nothing 
seems  to  remain  but  an  empty  form.  However, 
there  is  a  convent  in  the  steppes — Tshori — a  sort  of 
religious  academy,  where  an  effort  is  being  made 
to  restore  the  cult  to  the  original  level  of  Buddhist 
doctrines. 

Whilst  gathering  observations  on  tuberculosis,  we 
traversed  the  steppes  in  a  north-easterly  direction  as 
far  as  Sarepta.  This  town  seemed  like  a  civilised 
centre  after  the  steppes,  where  the  conditions  of  life 
were  somewhat  hard  in  spite  of  the  cordial  reception 
accorded  us  everywhere.  The  food,  consisting  solely 
in  tinned  goods  and  mutton,  had  caused  intestinal 
trouble  in  nearly  all  the  members  of  the  expedition ; 
on  the  other  hand,  we  were  greatly  incommoded  by 
the  heat,  lack  of  water,  and  abundance  of  insects  of 
all  kinds. 

In  spite  of  all,  Metchnikoff  had  hitherto  borne  the 
journey  fairly  well.  However,  since  we  left  Moscow 
he  had  had  frequent  cardiac  intermittence,  accom- 
panied sometimes  by  sharp  pains  along  the  sternum. 
But  the  stay  at  Sarepta  especially  tried  his  health  ; 
the  heat  reached  35°  C.  (95°  F.)  in  the  shade  and  52°  C. 
(about  125°  F.)  in  the  sun  ;  in  the  evening  the  windows 
could  not  be  opened  because  of  the  mosquitoes. 
Metchnikoff,  who  had  shown  so  much  endurance, 
now  became  weak,  drowsy,  and  nervous  ;  he  attri- 
buted his  condition  to  the  excessive  heat.  Yet  he 


218         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

could  not  leave  Sarepta,  for  all  the  members  of  both 
branches  of  the  mission  had  agreed  to  meet  there  in 
order  to  sum  up  the  results  of  their  observations. 

The  researches  of  the  expedition  for  the  study  of 
plague  were  not  finished,  and  the  Russian  mission 
had  agreed  to  complete  them.  So  far,  it  was  estab- 
lished that  neither  the  corpses — after  a  certain  time 
— nor  the  ground,  nor  the  surrounding  animals  con- 
tained any  plague  microbes,  and  no  carriers  had  been 
found  among  the  Kirghiz  population. 

The  data  gathered  among  the  Kalmuk  population 
justified  MetchnikofFs  hypothesis.  In  the  centre  of 
the  steppes,  where  the  Kalmuks  were  still  isolated, 
tuberculosis  was  completely  unknown ;  diagnosis 
reactions  were  negative.  They  became  positive  more 
and  more  frequently  as  we  came  nearer  the  periphery 
of  the  steppes  and  the  Russian  population.  The 
extreme  sensitiveness  of  the  Kalmuks  must  there- 
fore depend  on  the  fact  that  they  have  suffered  no 
natural  vaccination  in  the  steppes,  which  would 
support  the  idea  that  some  natural  vaccine  exists 
amongst  us.  Metchnikoff  therefore  concluded  that 
he  might  direct  ulterior  researches  towards  the  quest 
of  natural  tuberculous  vaccines.  Such  were  the 
scientific  results  of  the  expedition. 

Apart  from  that,  the  journey  to  Russia  had  a 
strong  personal  influence  on  Metchnikoff.  He  had 
formerly  left  his  country  under  the  impression  of  the 
fatal  error  committed  by  the  revolutionaries  in 
killing  Alexander  II.,  an  error  which  had  led  to  a 
protracted  reaction.  He  had  therefore  remained  very 
sceptical  concerning  the  Russian  revolutionary  move- 
ment ;  he  thought  that  the  necessary  reforms  might 
come  from  a  Government  evolution.  But,  during  his 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         219 

sojourn  in  Russia,  he  was  able  to  appreciate  events 
which  modified  his  ideas  to  a  great  extent.  He  was 
impressed  by  the  contrast  between  the  progressive 
aspirations  of  the  "  intellectuals  "  and  the  inertia  or 
noxious  activity  of  the  rulers.  The  policy  of  Casso, 
the  Minister  of  Public  Instruction,  who  ordered 
regular  raids  in  the  universities,  the  persecution  of 
Poles  and  Jews,  the  encouragement  of  the  "  black 
band "  obscurantism,  giving  plenary  powers  to 
creatures  of  darkness  like  Rasputin  and  his  peers, 
all  these  things  excited  indignation  in  a  man  who 
placed  the  free  development  of  human  culture  above 
everything. 

He  thus  ceased  to  count  upon  the  progressive 
evolution  of  a  Government  which  was  incapable  of 
solving  the  complicated  problems  of  Russian  life,  and 
henceforward  thought  that  those  problems  would  be 
solved  by  the  "  intellectuals  "  apart  from  the  Govern- 
ment and  in  opposition  to  it. 


CHAPTEK  XXXII 

Further  researches  on  the  intestinal  flora — Forty  Years'  Search  for 
a  Rational  Conception  of  Life. 

SINCE  Metchnikoff  had  conceived  the  idea  that  a  con- 
siderable part  was  played  in  human  life  by  the  in- 
testinal flora,  his  thoughts  had  centred  around  a  study 
which  he  thought  profitable  :  that  of  the  influence  of 
intestinal  microbes  on  the  normal  and  on  the  patho- 
logical organism. 

So,  on  his  return  from  Russia,  he  took  advantage 
of  the  fact  that  an  epidemic  of  infantile  cholera  had 
broken  out  in  order  to  continue  his  former  investiga- 
tions of  that  disease.  The  numerous  cases  which  he 
thus  studied  allowed  him  finally  to  establish  the 
specific  part  of  the  B.  proteus  as  well  as  the  similarity 
between  infantile  cholera  and  Asiatic  cholera.  This 
time  he  succeeded  in  contaminating,  not  only  young 
anthropoid  apes,  but  also  new-born  rabbits,  and  that 
not  only  through  sick  children's  excreta,  but  by  pure 
cultures  of  the  proteus,  which  eliminated  every  doubt 
of  the  specificity  of  this  microbe. 

Metchnikoff  explained  the  contamination  of  chil- 
dren exclusively  breast-fed,  either  by  the  presence  of 
a  carrier  personally  refractory,  among  the  entourage, 
or  by  the  transport  of  dirt,  by  means  of  flies,  on  the 
objects  which  infants  so  readily  put  into  their  mouths. 
He  therefore  advised  preventive  means  of  absolute 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         221 

hygiene  and  cleanliness,  especially  where  suckling 
infants  are  concerned. 

During  the  year  1912,  he  studied  the  intestinal  flora 
and  the  influence  of  divers  food  diets.  He  experi- 
mented upon  the  rat,  an  omnivorous  animal  whose 
mode  of  feeding  resembles  that  of  man.  The  rats 
were  divided  into  three  lots,  of  which  one  was  kept 
to  a  meat  diet,  another  to  a  vegetarian  regime, 
and  the  third  to  a  mixture  of  both.  The  meat  diet 
was  least  favourable,  and  the  best  results  obtained  by 
the  mixed  food. 

These  observations  led  Metchnikoff  to  the  study 
of  other  problems  intimately  connected  with  the 
same  question. 

He  undertook  a  series  of  researches  in  collabora- 
tion with  his  pupils,  MM.  Berthelot  and  Wollman,  on 
the  conditions  which  cause  the  diminution  within  the 
organism  of  the  toxic  products  of  intestinal  microbes. 
They  found  that  the  quantity  of  these  products  was 
very  small  in  those  animals  which  feed  on  vegetable 
or  fruit  containing  much  sugar,  such  as  carrots, 
beetroot,  dates,  etc.  This  is  explained  by  the  fact 
that  the  products  of  the  decomposition  of  sugar  are 
acids  which  prevent  the  development  of  putrefying 
microbes.  But  the  sugar,  rapidly  absorbed  by  the 
walls  of  the  small  intestine,  only  reaches  the  large 
intestine  in  a  much  reduced  quantity,  for  it  is  only 
up  to  a  certain  point  during  its  journey  that  the 
cellulose  of  vegetables,  rich  in  sugar,  protects  that 
substance.  The  question,  therefore,  was  to  find  the 
means  of  making  it  reach  the  large  intestine  in 
greater  quantities.  In  the  intestine  of  a  normal 
dog,  an  innocuous  microbe  was  found,  the  Glycobacter 
peptonicus,  which  decomposes  starch  into  sugar. 


222         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Metchnikoff  made  some  laboratory  animals  ingest 
this  microbe  together  with  food,  and  ascertained  that 
it  reached  the  large  intestine  and  decomposed  in  it 
the  starch  of  farinaceous  food  into  sugar,  of  which  the 
acid  products  prevented  the  swarming  of  putrefying 
microbes.  By  this  process  it  is  possible  to  reduce  to 
a  minimum  and  even  sometimes  to  eliminate  the 
production  of  phenol  and  indol  in  rats  subjected  to 
a  mixed  diet  and  made  at  the  same  time  to  ingest 
cultures  of  the  lactic  bacillus  and  of  the  glycobacter. 

Metchnikoff  applied  these  different  diets  to  him- 
self and  to  other  individuals  and  obtained  concordant 
results. 

However,  he  ascertained  that  it  is  not  only  the 
food  diet  which  regulates  the  quantity  of  microbian 
poisons  contained  in  the  organism  ;  that  quantity 
sometimes  varies  very  much  in  spite  of  an  identical 
diet.  He  thought  that  a  very  important  part  of 
influence  is  due  to  pre-existing  microbes  which  pre- 
vent or  favour  the  development  of  microbes  of  putre- 
faction. All  these  questions,  complicated  by  the 
richness  and  variety  of  the  intestinal  flora,  still  de- 
manded a  long  series  of  laborious  researches. 

At  the  end  of  the  winter  he  felt  tired,  and  we 
went  to  the  seaside  during  the  holidays.  But  the 
sharp  sea  air  did  not  suit  him ;  he  had  a  beginning  of 
cardiac  asthma  and  nearly  fainted  during  a  walk. 
We  therefore  had  to  come  away  from  the  sea,  and 
went  inland,  to  Eu.  At  the  beginning  of  our  stay, 
Metchnikoff  did  not  feel  well,  walking  tired  him,  he 
suffered  from  cardiac  intermittence  ;  it  was  only 
gradually  that  his  condition  improved  and  he  was 
able  to  write  the  preface  to  a  Russian  edition  of  his 
philosophical  articles. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         223 

This  book  was  entitled  Forty  Years'  Search  for  a 
Rational  Conception  of  Life,  and  the  articles  record 
the  evolution  of  his  ideas  and  his  search  "  not  only 
for  a  rational  understanding  of  life,  but  also  for  the 
solution  of  the  problem  of  death,  which  is  so  full  of 
contradictions . ' ' 

This  collection  of  articles  enables  us  at  the  same 
time  to  follow  the  gradual  transition  from  the  pessim- 
ism of  his  youth  to  the  optimism  of  his  maturity. 
His  first  writings  1  relate  to  the  discords  of  human 
nature  and  the  lack  of  a  solid  basis  for  morals. 

But,  already  in  1883,  he  concluded  an  opening 
Causerie  at  the  Naturalists'  Congress  in  Odessa,  by 
the  following  words :  "  The  theoretical  study  of 
natural  history  problems,  in  the  widest  sense  of  the 
word,  alone  can  give  a  sound  method  for  the  com- 
prehension of  truth  and  lead  to  a  definite  conception 
of  life — or  at  least  to  an  approach  to  it." 

Another  article,  The  Curative  Forces  of  the  Organ- 
ism, sums  up  his  phagocyte  theory,  and  states  the 
fact  that  the  organism  possesses  special  powers  of 
struggle  against  enemy  elements. 

In  1891,  he  wrote  The  Law  of  Life,  in  which  we  find 
the  dawning  idea  that  the  lack  of  harmony  in  human 
structure  does  not  make  a  happy  existence  and  a 
rational  code  of  morals  impossible.  Morals  must 
consist  "  not  in  rules  of  conduct  adapted  to  our 
present  defective  human  nature,  but  on  conduct 
based  upon  human  nature  modified,  according  to 
the  ideal  of  human  happiness." 

The  Flora  of  the  Human  Body,  published  in  1901, 

1  Education  from  an  Anthropological  Point  of  View,  The  Matrimonial 
Age,  The  Conception  of  Human  Nature,  The  Struggle  for  Existence  in  a 
General  Sense.  See  Bibliography. 


224         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

is  a  study  in  which  Metchnikoff 's  optimism  assumes  a 
definite  form,  for  he  speaks  of  the  efficacy  of  certain 
means  of  struggling  with  our  lack  of  harmony. 

The  last  chapter  in  the  book,  "  A  Conception  of 
Life  and  of  Medical  Science,"  introducing  the  word 
Orthobiosis,  strikes  the  optimistic  chord,  winged  and 
conclusive,  which  must  result  from  victory  over  the 
disharmonies  of  human  nature.  This  is  Metchnikoff's 
ultimate  formula,  summing  up  the  problems  of  life 
and  of  morals  : 

The  ethical  problem  reduces  itself  to  this  :  to  allow  the 
majority  of  human  beings  to  reach  life's  goal,  that  is,  to  accom- 
plish the  whole  cycle  of  a  rational  existence  to  its  natural  end. 
We  are  still  very  far  from  that.  We  can  but  sketch  the  rules 
to  follow  in  order  to  attain  this  ideal.  Its  final  realisation  will 
demand  more  scientific  researches,  which  must  be  allowed 
the  widest  and  freest  scope.  It  is  to  be  foreseen  that  existence 
will  have  to  be  mollified  in  many  ways.  Orthobiosis  demands 
an  active,  healthy,  and  sober  life,  devoid  of  luxury  and  excess. 

We  must  therefore  modify  present  customs  and  eliminate 
those  extremes  of  wealth  and  poverty  which  now  bring  us  so 
many  evils.  As  time  goes  on,  when  Science  has  caused  present 
evils  to  disappear,  when  men  no  longer  tremble  for  the  life 
and  welfare  of  their  dear  ones,  when  individual  life  follows 
a  normal  course — then  Man  can  attain  a  higher  level  and 
more  easily  devote  himself  to  exalted  goals. 

Then  Art  and  pure  Science  will  occupy  the  place  which 
is  due  to  them  and  which  they  lack  at  the  present  moment  in 
consequence  of  our  many  cares.  Let  us  hope  that  men  will 
understand  their  true  interests  and  contribute  to  the  progress 
of  orthobiosis. 

Many  efforts  are  necessary,  much  self-sacrifice,  but  they 
will  be  attenuated  by  the  consciousness  of  an  activity 
directed  towards  the  real  goal  of  human  existence. 


CHAPTER   XXXIII 

First  our  pleasures  die,  and  then 

Our  hopes,  and  then — our  fears,  and  when 

These  are  dead— the  debt  is  due. 

Dust  claims  dust — and  we  die  too. 

SHELLEY. 

Unpleasant  incidents — The  fabrication  of  lacto-bacilli — St.  Leger- 
en-Yvelines — Return  to  Paris — First  cardiac  attack — Evolution 
of  the  death-instinct — Notes  on  his  symptoms. 

THE  end  of  1912  had  some  unexpected  emotions  in 
store  for  us. 

Metchnikofi  had  always  been  able  to  congratulate 
himself  on  the  cordial  hospitality  which  he  had  found 
in  France,  and  to  the  end  of  his  life  he  remained 
deeply  grateful  for  it. 

But,  in  any  country,  incidents  may  occur  about 
which  it  would  be  unjust  to  generalise  when  they  are 
due  to  individuals  or  to  particular  limited  circles, 
as  was  the  fact  in  the  present  case.  In  spite  of 
the  broad  and  generous  ideas  so  widespread  in 
France,  a  sudden  current  of  narrow  nationalism 
became  manifest,  at  this  moment,  in  certain  quarters. 
Foreigners  were  accused  of  invading  the  country,  of 
occupying  lucrative  posts  and  increasing  the  diffi- 
culties of  the  bitter  struggle  for  existence.  At  first, 
only  vague  allusions  were  made,  but,  little  by  little, 
the  attacks  of  that  nationalist  circle  went  beyond  all 
bounds  of  justice  and  decency  and  turned  into  brutal 

225  Q 


226         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

provocations.     The  contemptuous  word  meteque  was 
resuscitated. 

One  newspaper  especially  led  a  furious  propaganda 
and  hesitated  at  no  means  of  overwhelming  its 
victims,  one  of  whom  was  MetchnikofE. 

Those  coarse  attacks  might  have  been  ignored 
with  the  contempt  which  they  deserved  had  they  not 
been  echoed  by  a  writer  in  a  serious  publication. 
Dr.  Roux  then  wrote  a  reply  in  the  same  paper,  and 
the  campaign  ceased. 

A  proverb  says  with  truth,  "  Slander  away !  some- 
thing will  always  stick."  And  it  was  thus  in  this 
case.  MetchnikofE  was  reproached  with  having  made 
money  by  his  scientific  discoveries.  The  story  of  his 
whole  life  and  the  fact  that  he  left  no  fortune  should 
suffice  to  answer  this  calumny,  yet  I  am  obliged  to 
dwell  on  it,  though  I  should  have  preferred  not  to  do 
so.  The  incident  is  too  characteristic  of  MetchnikofE 
to  be  omitted  in  this  biography,  which  must  be  a 
faithful  testimony.  The  calumny  was  based  on  a  real 
fact,  but  the  interpretation  of  it  was  absolutely  false. 
After  MetchnikofE's  experiments  on  the  lactic  bacillus, 
a  notion  of  the  hygienic  power  of  pure  sour  milk 
began  to  spread  among  the  public.  A  manufacturer 
had  the  idea  of  preparing  it  on  a  large  scale,  according 
to  the  new  scientific  principles,  and  wished  to  form 
a  company  to  that  effect ;  he  asked  MetchnikofE  to 
recommend  to  him  some  one  whom  he  could  entrust 
with  the  technical  work  of  preparing  the  pure  curded 
milk.  It  happened  that  we  were  just  then  trying  to 
find  a  post  for  a  young  couple  in  whom  we  were 
interested,  and  whose  child  was  my  husband's  god- 
daughter. He  trained  his  protege  in  the  technique 
required,  and  was  therefore  able  to  recommend  him. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         227 

A  short  time  later,  the  manufacturer  declared  that  he 
could  not  be  sure  of  the  success  of  his  enterprise  with- 
out the  guarantee  of  the  name  of  Metchnikoff,  whose 
researches  had  proved  the  advantages  of  the  prepara- 
tion in  question.  After  consulting  the  legal  adviser 
of  the  Pasteur  Institute,  Metchnikofi  consented  to 
this,  without  of  course  having  any  pecuniary  interest 
in  it ;  the  formula  chosen  was,  "  sole  provider  of 
Professor  Metchnikofi."  The  undertaking  succeeded, 
and  our  protege's  future  was  assured.  Metchnikoff 
himself,  however,  was  attacked  and  accused  most 
unjustly,  though  he  had  never  made  any  personal 
profit  whatever  from  the  enterprise.  And  yet,  when 
his  friends  told  him  that  it  had  been  very  reckless  on 
his  part  thus  to  expose  himself,  he  answered  that  he 
thought  it  impossible  to  hesitate  between  the  welfare 
of  a  whole  family  and  the  possibility  of  gossip.  His 
reasoning  was  imprudent  and  perhaps  erroneous,  but 
he  never  hesitated  between  doing  a  kindness  and  the 
possible  unpleasant  consequences  it  might  have  for 
himself.  If  some  people  could  not  understand  him, 
it  was  because  he  was  far  from  the  commonplace, 
"  not  like  other  people,"  a  quality  often  misunderstood 
and  unforgiven. 

Such  are  the  facts.  "  Honi  soit  qui  mal  y 
pense ! " 

The  desire  to  lessen  the  ills  around  him  was,  in 
general,  the  cause  of  heavy  anxieties  in  his  later  years. 
He  had  learnt  that  the  discovery  of  an  industrial 
process,  of  which  the  realisation  required  capital, 
would  be  an  excellent  investment.  He  immediately 
wished  to  make  his  friends  profit  by  it,  as  well  as  him- 
self, in  order  to  alleviate  material  difficulties.  But 
until  the  end  of  his  life  the  undertaking  had  no 


228         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

results,  and  he  was  obsessed  by  the  fear  of  having 
given  bad  advice  to  those  who  followed  him. 

He  knew  not  how  to  refuse,  even  when  he  should 
have  done  so  ;  therefore  he  was  odiously  exploited. 
Often  he  worked,  in  his  rare  leisure  moments,  for 
people  who  were  unworthy  of  his  kindness.  During 
the  last  years  of  his  life,  all  these  incidents  grieved 
him  so  much  that  he  used  to  say  he  felt  the  burden 
of  existence.  His  soul  was  darkened,  he  felt  very 
depressed,  and  his  health  suffered. 

We  spent  the  summer  holidays  of  1913  at  St. 
Leger-en-Yvelines,  a  pretty  place  on  the  edge  of  the 
Rambouillet  forest.  In  his  choice  of  a  holiday  resort, 
my  husband  was  always  guided  by  the  desire  to  find 
a  place  favourable  to  my  sketching,  and  St.  Leger 
answered  the  purpose  wonderfully.  The  fields  with 
their  vast  horizons,  the  forest  with  its  graceful 
bracken  and  carpets  of  softly-tinted  heather,  the 
mysterious  ponds,  all  went  to  compose  an  admirable 
symphony,  full  of  artistic  suggestion. 

Elie  himself  was  gay  and  full  of  spirits.  He 
worked  in  the  morning,  and  we  spent  the  rest  of  the 
day  in  the  forest.  He  often  read  aloud  ;  he  rested 
and  enjoyed  the  peaceful  calm,  pure  air,  and  verdure 
which  he  loved  so  much. 

He  had  arranged  to  take  advantage  of  these 
holidays  to  execute  work  of  which  he  had  been  think- 
ing for  a  long  time.  As  it  has  been  said  above,  he 
thought  that  the  life  instinct  was  only  developed 
gradually  and  produced  at  the  same  time  an  optimistic 
conception  of  life  ;  he  wished  to  verify  this  per- 
sonal impression  by  the  psychological  evolution  of 
divers  other  thinkers.  He  turned  to  Maeterlinck,  as 
a  representative  of  modern  ideas.  This  author, 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         229 

mystical  and  pessimistic  in  his  youth,  had  acquired 
in  his  maturity  a  far  more  optimistic  conception  of 
life.  He  himself  explained  this  change  by  the 
influence  of  circumstances,  but  MetchnikofE  saw  in 
it  a  deeper  cause,  connected  with  the  progressive 
evolution  of  the  vital  instinct  which,  by  bringing 
equilibrium  with  it,  suggests  optimism.  The  study 
of  Maeterlinck's  works  confirmed  his  opinion. 

Time  flowed  peacefully  between  rest  and  these 
occupations  ;  at  the  end  of  the  holidays,  we  con- 
gratulated ourselves  on  their  result  on  my  husband's 
health  ;  on  our  return,  his  friends  thought  him  looking 
well.  Yet  on  the  19th  October,  about  seven  in  the 
morning,  he  had  a  terrible  cardiac  attack  without 
any  apparent  cause.  I  found  him  seated  at  his  desk, 
and  was  terrified  by  his  appearance  ;  his  lips  were 
blue,  and  he  was  breathing  with  difficulty.  And  yet 
he  was  writing,  and  this  is  what  he  was  writing  : 

SfcvBES,  19th  October  1913,  7.45  A.M. 

This  morning,  after  a  good  night,  my  heart  was  working 
well ;  I  had  from  58  to  59  regular  pulsations.  But,  as  I  rose, 
I  suddenly  felt  acute  pain  along  the  sternum ;  at  the  same 
time  began  a  strong  crisis  of  tachycardia.  I  had  never  in  my 
life  felt  anything  like  it.  ... 

Here  he  had  to  stop  as  the  crisis  was  becoming 
intolerable,  but  a  few  hours  later  he  took  up  his  pen 
again: 

19th  October,  3  P.M. 

The  crisis  lasted  till  one  o'clock  (six  hours'  duration). 

There  were  times  when  the  pain  in  the  chest  was  unen- 
durable. 

I  was  thirsty  and  drank  hot,  weak  tea  ;  I  vomited  ;  I  felt 
wind  hi  the  stomach  and  the  intestine.  About  noon  the 
pain  decreased,  but  the  heart-beats  were  frequent  and  extremely 


230         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

irregular.  I  lunched  in  order  not  to  alarm  my  wife,  though  I 
feared  to  aggravate  the  attack  by  filling  my  stomach. 

But  the  opposite  happened.  From  the  first  mouthfuls  (I 
naturally  eat  very  little)  the  pain  became  more  tolerable 
and  the  pulse  less  frequent.  After  lunch,  everything  became 
normal  again  ;  the  pain  ceased,  the  pulsations  slackened  (78- 
80  per  min.)  and  became  much  more  regular.  Intermittence 
was  rare,  and  I  several  times  counted  100  regular  beats  in 
succession.  I  remained  absolutely  conscious  during  the  whole 
crisis,  and  what  chiefly  pleased  me  is  that  I  felt  no  fear  of 
death,  which  I  was  expecting  at  every  moment.  It  was  not 
only  reasoning  which  made  me  understand  that  it  was  better 
to  die  now,  whilst  my  intellectual  powers  had  not  yet  gone 
from  me  and  I  had  evidently  accomplished  all  of  what  I  was 
capable  ;  I  resigned  myself  also  in  feeling,  and  quite  serenely 
to  the  catastrophe  which  was  coming  upon  me  and  which 
would  be  far  from  unexpected. 

My  mother,  who  had  suffered  from  heart  attacks  during 
a  great  part  of  her  life,  died  at  65.  My  father  died  of  apoplexy 
in  his  68th  year. 

My  eldest  sister  succumbed  to  an  oedema  of  the  brain ; 
my  brother  Nicholas  died  at  57  of  angina  pectoris. 

Undoubtedly  my  cardiac  heredity  is  a  bad  one.  Already 
in  my  youth,  I  suffered  from  my  heart.  At  33  I  had  such 
cardiac  pains  that  sometimes  I  had  to  rest  after  walking  a 
few  paces.  At  34,  I  had  much  giddiness  and  a  feeling  of 
heaviness  in  the  head.  I  could  not  read  a  few  lines,  a  poster 
even,  without  a  painful  sensation.  In  1881,  during  relapsing 
fever,  I  had  severe  cardiac  intermittence,  very  fatiguing  and 
only  relieved  by  small  doses  of  digitalin. 

I  afterwards  had  periodical  attacks  of  intermittence  but 
never  any  tachycardia,  at  least  none  that  lasted  more  than  a 
few  seconds.  A  little  tincture  of  strophanthus  used  to  relieve 
me  during  intermittence.  I  ended  by  consulting  Dr.  Vaquez, 
but  the  treatment  he  prescribed  gave  me  no  relief.  As  I 
attributed  my  condition  to  poisoning  by  the  toxins  of  intestinal 
microbes,  I  resolved  to  give  up  raw  food  and  to  purge  myself 
now  and  then  with  Carabana  water.  The  success  of  this 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         231 

treatment  was  indisputable,  and  in  1897  the  intermittence 
ceased.  In  the  autumn  of  1898  I  was  beginning  to  suffer 
from  polyuria  ;  I  consulted  Albaran,  who  counselled  ContrexS- 
ville  water,  but  this  cure  caused  the  appearance  of  albumen 
in  my  urine.  In  1898  I  consulted  Norden  at  Frankfort  and 
Leube  in  Paris  during  the  Exhibition  of  1900.  Neither  found 
anything  alarming.  Norden  had  told  me  that  I  had  symp- 
toms of  arterio-sclerosis  inherent  to  my  age  (53).  I  adopted  a 
mixed  diet ;  I  took,  regularly,  sour  milk  prepared  with 
cultures  of  the  Bulgarian  lactic  bacillus,  and,  during  some 
years,  my  health  was  quite  satisfactory. 

It  was  only  after  my  journey  to  Russia  in  1909  that  a 
notable  aggravation  supervened.  I  felt  acute  pains  in  the 
chest,  along  the  sternum,  especially  after  eating  or  walking. 

In  1911  the  intermittence  reappeared.  In  January  1911, 
I  consulted  Dr.  Heitz  in  order  to  know  whether  I  could  under- 
take an  expedition  in  the  Kalmuk  steppes,  where  hygienic 
conditions  are  very  unfavourable.  Dr.  Heitz  found  my  heart 
hypertrophied,  some  slight  galloping  noise,  the  blood-pressure 
(Pachon's  apparatus)  17-16-15.  He  said,  however,  that  I 
might  undertake  the  journey,  but  added,  "  People  die  suddenly 
with  less  the  matter  than  that  with  their  hearts."  The  journey 
went  well,  though  I  suffered  from  frequent  intermittence  and 
pains  along  the  sternum  when  I  walked. 

After  my  return,  my  heart  was  fairly  satisfactory. 

What  consoles  me  especially  is  that  I  have  preserved  my 
activity,  my  passion  for  work,  and  my  intellectual  powers. 
But,  naturally,  I  am  ready  to  die  at  any  moment. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  summer  I  was  sounded  by  Dr. 
Manoukhine  and  Professor  Tchistovitch ;  both  thought  the 
heart-sounds  satisfactory,  but  Manoukhine  was  rather  struck 
by  the  weakness  of  the  first  aortic  sound  whilst  the  second  was 
very  strong.  I  had  frequent  intermittence,  but  with  intervals 
of  normal  pulsations.  Latterly  I  have  felt  better  in  that 
respect,  and  the  pain  along  the  sternum  only  occurred  in 
exceptional  cases. 

Whilst  preparing  for  my  end,  I  am  glad  that  I  can  face  it 
with  courage  and  serenity. 


232         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

As  I  look  back  upon  my  life,  it  seems  to  me  to  have  been 
as  "  orthobiotic  "  as  possible. 

If  it  may  seem  premature  to  die  at  68  years  and  5  months, 
it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  I  began  to  live  very  early  (I 
published  my  first  scientific  work  at  18) ;  that  I  have  had 
many  emotions  during  my  life  ;  that  I  was,  so  to  speak,  in  a 
state  of  continual  ebullition. 

The  polemics  concerning  phagocytosis  might  have  killed  or 
finally  enfeebled  me  much  earlier.  At  times  (for  instance,  I 
refer  to  Lubarsch's  attacks  in  1889  and  those  of  Pfeiffer 
in  1894)  I  was  ready  to  rid  myself  of  life. 

Moreover,  I  only  began  to  follow  a  rational  hygiene  (accord- 
ing to  my  opinion)  after  I  was  53  years  old  and  already  had 
symptoms  of  arterio-sclerosis.  I  have  been  fairly  successful 
in  combating  intestinal  putrefaction  (phenols  and  indols),1 
but  I  could  not  succeed  in  getting  rid  of  abundant  clostridium 
butyricum  which  were  implanted  in  my  intestine. 

To  sum  up,  I  rejoice  that  I  have  had  an  existence  not  devoid 
of  sense,  and  I  feel  some  satisfaction  in  considering  my  con- 
ception of  the  problem  of  life  as  being  accurate. 

As  I  prepare  to  die,  I  have  not  the  shadow  of  a  hope  of  a 
life  beyond,  and  I  calmly  look  forward  to  complete  annihilation. 

It  is  possible  that  having  very  early  begun  a  very  intense 
life,  I  have  attained  at  68  a  precocious  satiety  of  living,  just 
as  certain  women  cease  to  menstruate  earlier  than  the  great 
majority.  EL.  METCHNIKOFF. 

P.S. — I  believe  everything  is  in  order  in  view  of  my  end 
(my  will,  my  affairs,  etc.). 

P.S. — Let  those  who  think  that,  according  to  my  principles, 
I  should  have  lived  a  hundred  years,  "  forgive  "  me  my  pre- 
mature end  in  view  of  the  extenuating  circumstances  above- 
mentioned  (intense  and  precocious  activity,  excitable  tempera- 
ment, nervous  disposition,  and  late  beginning  of  the  rational 
diet).  E.  M. 

1  28th  June  1914. — I  have  again  analysed  my  urine  and  I  again  find 
indican  in  fairly  large  quantities  in  spite  of  a  diet  which  is  as  rational  as 
possible.  I  am  trying  to  elucidate  this  strange  contradiction. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         233 

The  very  next  day  he  felt  well  enough  to  return 
to  his  work. 

When  urged  to  settle  down  in  Paris  in  order  to 
avoid  the  fatigue  of  the  journey,  he  replied  that  the 
peace  and  pure  air  of  Sevres  were  indispensable  to 
his  health,  that  the  journey  did  not  fatigue  him  in 
the  least,  but  on  the  contrary  provided  him  with 
wholesome  exercise  and  a  pleasant  walk.  Knowing 
how  prudent  he  was,  I  did  not  dare  to  insist  for  fear 
of  mistaking  what  was  really  best  for  him.  And  life 
gradually  resumed  its  normal  course.  .  .  . 

For  a  long  time  Metchnikofi  had  been  observing 
himself  very  attentively  ;  he  took  regular  notes  on 
the  influence  of  the  food  diet  which  he  followed  ;  by 
the  analysis  of  his  urine,  he  sought  for  indications 
respecting  the  toxic  products  of  his  intestinal  flora  ; 
he  studied  upon  himself  the  advance  of  senility, 
whitening  of  hair,  etc. 

Since  his  crisis  he  had  adopted  the  habit  of  writing 
occasional  notes  on  his  psychical  state.  This  is  what 
he  wrote  on  the  23rd  December  1913  at  Sevres  : 

Two  months  and  more  have  passed  since  I  wrote  the  pre- 
ceding lines.  During  that  period  my  health  has  been  satis- 
factory ;  nevertheless  I  have  wondered  every  day  whether  it 
would  be  my  last. 

I  am  therefore  hastening  to  write  my  memoir  on  infantile 
cholera. 

The  cardiac  intermittence  has  been  more  or  less  frequent, 
yet  every  day  I  have  had  periods  of  regular  pulsations  (58-66-72 
per  minute)  as  usual. 

The  day  before  yesterday  I  contracted  a  bad  cold, 
accompanied  by  a  little  fever.  Wondering  if  it  would  de- 
generate into  pneumonia,  I  faced  anew  the  possibility  of  a 
near  end,  and  I  resumed  the  analysis  of  my  thoughts,  feelings, 
and  sensations. 


234         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

As  my  70  years  draw  near  to  their  close,  it  seems  to  me 
that  a  feeling  of  satiety  with  life,  what  I  call  the  "  natural 
death  instinct,"  is  gently  beginning  to  evolve. 

When,  in  autumn  1910,  experimenting  with  typhoid 
cultures,  I  had  soiled  my  face  and  mouth,  I  naturally  said 
to  myself  that  it  might  give  me  typhoid  fever.  I  washed  my 
face  and  beard  with  soap  and  a  solution  of  sublimate  without 
considering  that  I  was  safe  against  the  infection.  I  reasoned 
that  it  would  be  preferable  to  contract  the  disease  and  to  die 
of  it.  (At  my  age  typhoid  fever  is  almost  always  fatal.  I 
had  never  had  it,  and  might  therefore  consider  myself  in  a 
state  of  receptivity.)  It  is  fine  to  fall  on  the  battlefield, 
especially  at  an  age  when  life  and  activity  are  already  on 
the  wane.  But  all  that  was  pure  reasoning ;  instinctively  I 
still  felt  a  great  desire  to  live,  and  it  was  with  joy  tha4}  I 
counted  the  days  which  separated  me  from  the  danger  of 
having  contracted  typhoid  fever.  I  felt  much  relieved  a 
fortnight  after  the  incident,  considering  that  the  limit  of 
incubation  was  passed. 

Thus  reasoning  and  feeling  or  instinct  were  not  in  accord. 

Since  then,  in  the  three  following  years,  a  modification  has 
taken  place  in  my  psychical  condition. 

The  prospect  of  death  frightens  me  less  than  before.  During 
my  cardiac  crisis  of  the  19th  October  1913  I  even  felt  no  fear  of 
death,  and  my  satisfaction  at  my  recovery  was  less  than  before. 

I  think  it  is  that  difference  in  quantity  which  constitutes 
the  first  symptoms  of  indifference  towards  death,  an  indiffer- 
ence which  is  hardly  perceptible  at  first. 

Satiety  with  life  is  sometimes  observed  in  old  people  of 
80 ;  it  is  not  surprising  to  feel  the  first  approach  of  it 
about  70,  especially  in  the  case  of  a  man  like  myself  who 
began  very  early  to  lead  a  very  intense  life. 

Other  special  circumstances  influence  even  more  this 
precocious  satiety  of  life.  As  I  become  more  indifferent  to 
my  own  life  I  feel  a  more  and  more  acute  anxiety  for  the 
health,  life,  and  happiness  of  those  who  are  dear  to  me. 

I  am  especially  troubled  by  a  consciousness  of  the  im- 
perfection of  modern  medicine.  In  spite  of  the  progress 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         235 

realised  in  these  latter  days,  it  is  still  powerless  against  a 
multitude  of  diseases,  threatening  us  on  all  sides. 

Pulmonary  lesions  (tuberculosis,  pneumonia,  etc.),  the 
nephrites,  and  an  infinite  quantity  of  other  diseases  can 
yet  neither  be  prevented  nor  cured.  So  we  live  in  constant 
fear  for  those  we  love.  When  medicine  shall  (as  I  am  per- 
suaded) have  conquered  all  these  evils,  one  cause  of  the 
bitterness  of  life  will  cease — but  that  is  not  yet  the  case. 

That  is  why,  besides  the  weakening  of  the  life-instinct,  a 
resignation  towards  death  grows  in  us,  as  a  means  of  no 
longer  feeling  the  ills  which  afflict  our  neighbours. 

With  time,  when  that  source  of  unhappiness  has  been 
eliminated  by  medicine,  old  age  will  be  more  attractive,  and 
an  orthobiotic  life  will  become  normal  and  realisable. 

At  the  ages  of  50,  60,  65,  I  felt  an  intense  joy  in 
living,  such  as  I  described  in  my  Studies  on  Human  Nature 
and  Optimistic  Essays.  In  the  last  few  years  it  has  lessened 
markedly. 

Scientific  work  still  provokes  in  me  an  invincible  enthusi- 
asm, but  I  am  becoming  more  indifferent  to  many  of  the 
pleasures  of  life. 

And  indeed  he  no  longer  had  the  joyous  soul  of 
former  days  ;  into  his  life  a  funereal  note  had  crept, 
low  but  continuous  and  obstinate.  He  gave  all  the 
more  energy  to  the  study  of  those  questions  the 
solution  of  which  was  to  bring  about  the  reign  of 
orthobiosis.  He  spent  the  whole  winter  in  researches 
on  the  intestinal  flora  and  on  the  completion  of  his 
studies  on  infantile  cholera. 

In  the  spring,  on  the  occasion  of  his  anniversary, 
he  wrote  the  following  : 

SfcVBBS,  l&th  May  1914. 

I  have  to-day  entered  my  70th  year ;  it  is  a  great  event 
for  me.  As  I  analyse  my  feelings,  I  realise  more  and  more 
the  weakening  of  my  "  life-instinct." 

In  order  to  verify  my  impressions,  I  wished  to  hear  again 


236         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

the  musical  compositions  which  formerly  used  to  make  me 
shed  tears  of  enthusiasm  (for  instance,  Beethoven's  7th 
Symphony  or  Bach's  aria  for  the  violin).  Well,  my  impres- 
sionability towards  music  has  very  much  lessened.  In  spite 
of  the  facility  with  which  old  people  weep,  I  hardly  shed  a 
single  tear,  save  with  rare  exceptions. 

I  observe  the  same  change  in  other  circumstances. 

This  spring,  the  blossoming  of  flowers,  buds,  bushes,  and 
trees,  all  this  renascence  of  nature,  has  not  excited  in  me  a 
shadow  of  the  emotion  of  preceding  years. 

Rather  I  felt  a  melancholy,  not  on  account  of  my  coming 
end,  but  because  of  the  consciousness  of  the  burden  of  existence. 

There  is  no  question  for  me  now  of  the  old  joy  of  living  ; 
my  predominant  feeling  is  infinite  anxiety  for  the  health  and 
happiness  of  those  I  love.  I  now  so  well  understand  Petten- 
koffer,  who  committed  suicide  at  84  after  losing  all  his 
family.  Their  death  had  evidently  been  precocious  because 
of  the  impotence  of  medicine.  At  every  step,  one  comes 
across  cases  where  neither  hygiene  nor  therapeutics  can  do 
anything.  How  many  are  infected  with  tuberculosis,  no 
one  knows  how  or  where.  What  is  to  be  done  to  avoid  it  ? 
And  the  consequences  of  measles,  of  scarlet  fever,  perhaps  of 
a  simple  sore  throat,  followed  sometimes  by  tuberculosis 
or  nephritis ! 

What  is  the  use  of  being  able  to  foretell,  by  means  of  the 
proportion  of  urea  in  the  blood,  the  precise  moment  of  the 
death  of  an  "  azotemic  "  patient  when  you  cannot  prevent  it 
or  cure  him  ? 

This  imperfection  of  medical  science  prevents  many 
from  reaching  true  orthobiosis,  and  it  is  understandable  that, 
seeing  the  present  state  of  medicine,  the  feeling  of  the  "  burden 
of  existence  "  may  be  precocious,  as  in  my  case. 

But  it  is  indubitable  that,  in  spite  of  the  slowness  with 
which  medical  science  is  developing,  it  will  in  the  future 
reach  a  degree  which  will  enable  us  to  cease  to  tremble  any 
longer  before  all  sorts  of  incurable  diseases.  Orthobiosis  will 
then  appear,  no  longer  under  its  present  incomplete  form, 
but  as  the  solid  and  essential  basis  of  life. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 

Return  to  St.  Leger-en-Yvelines— Norka— Studies  on  the  death  of  the 
silk-worm  moth — War  declared — Mobilisation. 

THE  drawback  of  the  holidays  consisted,  for  Metchni- 
koif,  in  coming  away  from  his  laboratory  and  in 
the  impossibility  of  following  his  diet  in  a  hotel  or 
a  boarding-house.  We  therefore  resolved  to  hire  a 
cottage  in  some  quiet  place,  to  organise  a  small 
laboratory,  and  to  continue  our  usual  mode  of  life. 

St.  Leger-en-Yvelines,  where  we  had  spent  part  of 
the  preceding  summer,  answered  all  our  requirements. 
We  took  a  small  villa  there  and  called  it  "  Norka," 
which  means  in  Russian  "  little  hole,"  "  little  refuge," 
and  came  there  for  the  holidays  in  July  1914. 

Elie  seemed  pleased  to  be  there  ;  thanks  to  the 
laboratory,  he  could  easily  vary  his  occupations,  for 
continuous  reading  fatigued  him.  His  reflections 
having  led  him  to  the  problem  of  natural  death,  he 
had  for  some  time  been  seeking  for  a  subject  on  which 
he  could  study  the  mechanism  of  the  phenomenon. 
He  had  formerly  studied  the  May-flies  (Ephemeridse), 
predestined  to  a  natural  death  by  their  rudimentary 
buccal  organs,  incapable  of  use  in  feeding.  But 
the  life  of  those  insects,  a  life  of  a  few  hours  or  a 
few  days  at  the  most,  was  too  short  to  allow  the 
necessary  researches.  The  males  of  the  Rotifera, 
which  are  also  deprived  of  buccal  organs  and  even  of 

237 


238          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

digestive  organs,  were  too  small  in  size  for  physio- 
logical experiments.  Thus,  those  two  examples  of 
natural  death  among  multicellular  beings  were  un- 
suitable to  the  projected  study. 

He  found  a  more  favourable  subject  in  the  moth 
of  the  silk-worm  (Bombyx  mori)  ;  the  rudimentary 
buccal  organs  of  that  insect  make  all  feeding  im- 
possible and  predestine  it  to  a  natural  death.  The 
dimensions  of  the  silk-worm  moth  are  large  enough 
and  it  has  a  life  duration  of  twenty-five  or  thirty 
days,  therefore  sufficient  to  allow  the  study  of  the 
mechanism  by  which  its  death  is  brought  about. 
Metchnikoff  procured  a  quantity  of  silk-worms,  and 
soon  the  moths  hatched  and  covered  all  the  mantel- 
pieces and  tables  in  Norka  with  white  flakes.  He 
ascertained  that  it  was  not  hunger  which  brought 
about  the  death  of  the  moths,  for  their  organism  was 
not  in  the  least  exhausted. 

The  nutrition  of  the  latter  takes  place  at  the 
expense  of  the  fatty  substance  which  remains  after 
the  metamorphosis  of  the  chrysalis  into  a  moth.  The 
dissolution  of  this  fatty  substance  produces  toxins 
which  pass  into  the  urine.  Thus  the  obvious  cause 
of  the  death  of  the  moth  is  an  acid  intoxication  by 
toxic  urine  secreted  in  the  bladder.  As  the  latter 
does  not  empty  itself,  uraemia  becomes  inevitable. 

The  majority  of  moths  contain  no  micro-organisms 
which  could  suggest  death  by  infection. 

The  only  theoretic  objection  against  a  natural 
death  might  consist  in  the  existence  of  "  invisible 
microbes."  Indeed,  the  question  of  invisible  microbes 
revealed  in  certain  infections  perturbed  Metchnikoff's 
mind  to  such  an  extent  that,  during  his  last  illness,  he 
used  to  say  that  it  would  have  been  a  curse  to  his 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         239 

ulterior  activity,  a  sort  of  ghost  preventing  all  definite 
conclusions  in  problems  connected  with  the  absence 
or  presence  of  microbes.  The  last  word  oh  natural 
death,  he  said,  will  only  be  spoken  when,  owing  to 
the  improvement  of  the  microscope,  those  microbes 
which  are  as  yet  invisible  to  us  will  become  visible. 
Nevertheless,  as  far  as  can  be  judged  at  present,  the 
death  of  the  Bombyx  mori  is  due,  not  to  external 
causes,  but  to  the  structure  of  the  insect  itself,  and  is 
therefore  a  natural  death. 

During  these  holidays,  Metchnikofi  also  wrote 
reminiscences  of  his  friend  the  physiologist  Setche- 
noff.1 

We  went  quietly  for  fairly  long  walks ;  Metchni- 
kofi rested  on  the  shores  of  his  favourite  lake  (Vilpert), 
and  his  health  was  very  satisfactory. 

After  the  intense  heat,  some  rain  came  and  the 
weather  became  ideal ;  there  was  a  perceptible 
lull  in  nature  ;  the  underwood  was  becoming  purple 
with  heather  ;  the  corn  was  ripening  ;  harvest  had 
begun,  and  sheaves  stood  up  in  the  fields.  All  was 
calm  and  peaceful ;  we  never  tired  of  the  charm 
of  the  forest,  of  the  fields,  of  the  beautiful  rustic 
surroundings,  and  our  souls  sang  in  unison  with 
Nature.  .  .  . 

Suddenly,  like  a  flash  of  lightning  in  the  pure  sky, 
the  news  of  the  war  burst  out ! 

The  possibility  had  so  often  been  mentioned  in 
late  years  that  no  one  believed  in  it.  Even  now,  on 
the  eve  of  the  catastrophe,  it  was  hoped  that  all 
would  settle  down.  .  .  . 

Until  the  last  moment  Metchnikoff  refused  to 
believe  in  it ;  he  could  not  admit  that  a  pacific 

1  In  the  Russian  Review,  Messenger  of  Europe. 


240         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

solution  was  impossible.  "How  is  it  possible  that 
in  Europe,  in  a  civilised  country,  mutual  interests 
should  not  be  reconciled  without  killing  ?  "  he  said. 
"  A  war  would  be  madness,  even  from  the  point  of 
view  of  Germany,  who  risks  having  to  face  three 
great  powers.  No,  war  is  not  possible." 

And  yet  war  was  spreading  all  over  Europe. 

The  situation  of  France  seemed  critical,  for  the 
country  had  just  gone  through  a  series  of  internal 
storms.  The  labour  question,  that  of  income  tax, 
and  that  of  the  three  years'  military  service  had 
raised  sharp  controversies  ;  the  Caillaux  affair  had 
revealed  hidden  sores  in  political  life  ;  the  insane 
assassination  of  Jaures,  of  which  the  reason  was 
still  unknown,  gave  rise  to  the  blackest  prognostica- 
tions. 

Already  on  the  28th  July,  date  of  the  declaration 
of  war  by  Austria  against  Serbia,  anxiety  had  become 
intense,  but  it  was  hoped  that  Russia  would  settle 
matters  between  the  two  countries,  and  that  the 
trouble  would  remain  local. 

On  the  1st  August,  Germany  declared  war  on 
Russia,  and  it  became  obvious  that  the  storm  was 
coming  on  apace.  The  aspect  of  life  suddenly 
changed;  a  feeling  of  dread  and  expectancy  un- 
nerved everybody  ;  mobilisation  was  mentioned  ; 
automobiles  at  full  speed  hurried  along  the  roads  ; 
the  harvest  was  hastily  gathered.  .  .  .  We  could 
no  longer  work,  go  for  walks,  or  admire  nature  with- 
out a  feeling  of  heavy  anxiety. 

We  went  about  like  automatons,  all  our  thoughts 
centred  on  one  point — the  threatening,  inevitable 
war.  Everything  had  put  on  a  sinister  aspect,  and 
Nature  herself  joined  in  the  general  gloom ;  the 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         241 

weather  became  stormy,  thunder  rolled  alarmingly, 
heavy  clouds  hurried  and  met  in  a  gigantic  struggle, 
evoking  the  image  of  other  coming  struggles.  During 
the  night  of  the  1st  August  the  storm  never  ceased, 
we  could  not  sleep ;  all  night  long,  frenzied  auto- 
mobiles raced  along  the  high  road,  sounding  their 
lugubrious  horns.  In  the  middle  of  the  night,  we 
heard  some  one  knocking  at  the  doors  of  the  police 
station  opposite.  What  was  happening  ?  In  the 
darkness,  illumined  by  flashes  of  lightning,  we  saw 
horsemen  with  lanterns ;  they  were  messengers 
bringing  the  orders  for  mobilisation.  It  was  pro- 
claimed the  next  day. 

The  population  gathered  at  the  mairie,  a  grave, 
silent  crowd ;  the  few  words  exchanged  only  con- 
cerned war  and  partings.  Old  men,  who  had  lived 
through  1870,  were  low-spirited  ;  young  ones,  on  the 
contrary,  were  excited. 

We  had  to  think  of  our  return  home,  which  might 
be  difficult  later.  We  went  into  the  forest  for  the 
last  time  ;  the  evening  was  mild  and  calm  after  the 
storm.  The  peace  and  beauty  around  us  were  such 
that  we  longed  not  to  believe  in  the  terrible  reality. 
But  we  had  to  bid  farewell  to  all  that  had  charmed 
us.  We  went  once  again  into  the  meadows  near 
Norka.  The  hayricks  were  standing  in  rows,  their 
soft,  golden  silhouettes  harmoniously  outlined  against 
the  hilly  background  purple  with  heather.  We  sat 
down  on  the  mown  grass.  Suddenly,  in  the  calm  of 
the  evening,  bells  began  to  sound.  It  was  not  the 
distant  and  poetic  call  for  vespers,  nor  the  sad  sound 
of  the  passing  bell,  but  the  hard,  sinister,  ill- 
omened  tocsin,  warning  the  whole  countryside,  down 
to  the  most  distant,  most  peaceful  hamlets  and  to  the 

R 


242         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

wood-cutters  in  the  forest,  that  mobilisation  had 
commenced.  .  .  . 

Another  storm  broke  out  in  the  night.  Again  the 
rolling  of  the  thunder  shook  our  nerves  and  seemed 
like  the  echo  of  distant  battles  ;  again  mysterious 
automobiles  and  horsemen  raced  along  the  road,  and 
eveiything,  every  sound,  every  shadow  seemed 
sinister. 

We  did  not  feel  any  fear,  but  a  kind  of  insupport- 
able nervous  tension.  Later,  when  we  were  much 
nearer  real  danger,  we  did  not  experience  this  electric, 
almost  morbid  feeling. 

The  next  day,  Germany  had  declared  war  on 
France. 

It  was  only  with  much  difficulty  that  we  found 
a  carriage  to  take  us  to  the  station.  On  the  road 
we  were  constantly  being  passed  by  various  vehicles, 
crowded  with  soldiers  and  young  men  going  off.  The 
little  station  was  full  of  people,  the  train  also.  Moved 
and  excited,  the  people  shouted,  "  Vive  la  France  !  " 
and  sent  friendly  salutes  to  unknown  soldiers  in  the 
train.  Women,  seeing  their  men  off,  were  trying  to 
be  gay ;  they  encouraged  the  departing  ones,  and 
only  wept  after  they  were  gone.  The  general  im- 
pression, both  moral  and  material,  was  excellent ; 
every  one  seemed  equal  to  his  task,  conscious  of 
his  duty,  and  desirous  of  fulfilling  it  well.  The 
mobilisation  seemed  well  organised,  everything  was 
being  accomplished  without  any  flurry  or  bustle, 
even  the  trains  were  almost  punctual. 

All  small  personal  interests  and  party  quarrels 
which  had  latterly  poisoned  life  now  suddenly  dis- 
appeared ;  everywhere  the  desire  to  be  useful  was 
noticeable ;  people  became  better,  there  was  more 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         243 

sympathy,  more  solidarity;  the  distance  between 
classes  seemed  to  decrease,  the  common  trial  made 
all  equal. 

There  was  beauty  in  that  moment,  for  it  showed 
that  the  greatest  of  evils  might  yet  exalt  and  purify 
the  human  soul. 


CHAPTER  XXXV 

Return  to  Paris — The  deserted  Institute — Memoir  on  the  Founders  of 
Modern  Medicine — Metchnikoff's  Jubilee — Last  holidays  at  Norka. 

THIS  was  but  the  beginning  of  the  war ;  soon  it 
spread  with  vertiginous  rapidity,  and  made  its  cruel 
destructive  force  felt. 

On  our  return  from  Norka,  we  found  every- 
thing on  a  war  footing.  The  very  next  morning, 
Metchnikoff  hurried  to  the  laboratory.  He  only 
reached  Paris  with  some  difficulty,  all  means  of 
communication  being  encumbered  by  soldiers.  He 
had  left  the  house  nervous  and  excited  but  full  of 
courage  and  energy.  I  shall  never  forget  his  return 
home.  .  .  . 

I  was  awaiting  him  as  usual,  just  outside  the 
station,  and,  as  he  got  out  of  the  train,  I  did  not 
recognise  him.  I  saw  a  stooping  old  man,  bent  as 
under  a  heavy  burden ;  his  usual  vivacity  was  gone, 
and  had  given  place  to  the  deepest  depression. 

He  ibid  me  in  a  broken  voice  that  the  Institute 
was  already  deserted  ;  that  it  was  under  the  orders  of 
the  military  authorities,  and  completely  disorganised 
for  scientific  work.  The  younger  men  were  mobilised  ; 
the  laboratories  empty ;  the  animals  used  for  ex- 
periments had  been  killed  on  account  of  the  departure 
of  the  servants,  and  for  fear  of  a  lack  of  food.  Every- 
thing that  had  been  devoted  to  the  service  of  science 

244 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         245 

and  of  research  into  means  of  preserving  life  had 
been  handed  over  to  the  service  of  war.  Normal  and 
cultured  life  was  arrested.  And  that  was  the  out- 
come of  civilisation. 

Metchnikoff  felt  as  if  he  had  suddenly  been  dropped 
into  the  abyss  of  centuries,  into  the  times  of  human 
savagery.  He  could  not  accustom  his  mind  to  the 
idea  of  such  a  fall ;  it  seemed  to  him  a  paradox,  an 
impossibility,  that  civilised  peoples  could  not  do 
without  sanguinary  fights  in  order  to  solve  questions 
of  mutual  relations. 

The  events  which  were  taking  place  agitated  and 
depressed  him  all  the  more  that  he  had  not  the 
possibility  of  becoming  absorbed  in  scientific  investiga- 
tions ;  he  was  completely  thrown  off  his  balance. 

And  as,  one  by  one,  the  news  came  of  the  death 
in  action  of  several  of  the  young  men  who  had  left 
the  Institute,  Metchnikoff's  grief  knew  no  limits.  He 
could  not  bear  the  idea,  now  a  terrible  reality,  that 
these  brilliant  young  lives  should  be  sacrificed, 
victims  of  those  who  should  have  directed  the  peoples 
towards  peace  and  a  rational  life,  and  who,  instead  of 
that,  threw  the  most  precious  part  of  humanity  into 
the  abyss  of  death.  War  became  a  dark,  sinister 
background  to  his  daily  life.  The  victims  of  war 
were  not  only  those  who  fell  on  the  battle-field,  but 
included  him  whose  whole  life -effort  had  been 
directed  towards  the  conservation  of  human  exist- 
ence and  the  search  for  rational  conceptions.  The 
contrast  between  his  aspirations  and  the  cruel  reality 
had  been  to  him  a  blow  which  his  sensitive  and  suffer- 
ing heart  was  not  fit  to  bear. 

The  Germans  were  advancing  rapidly.  Then 
came  the  sad  days  of  panic,  when  the  inhabitants 


246         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

were  leaving  Paris  in  numbers  and  the  Government 
started  for  Bordeaux.  At  night,  the  sky  was  swept 
by  the  gigantic,  luminous  sword  of  the  searchlights  ; 
the  rumble  of  camion  could  be  heard  in  the  dis- 
tance. .  .  . 

Metchnikoff,  however,  had  no  personal  fear  what- 
ever. He  very  simply  decided  on  his  course  of 
action,  which  was  to  remain  at  the  Institute  if  his 
presence  there  could  be  of  use ;  if  not,  to  retire  to  some 
quiet  place  where  he  could  work.  As  there  was 
hardly  any  staff  left  at  the  Institute  on  account  of 
the  mobilisation,  he  did  not  go  away,  but,  on  the 
contrary,  we  came  to  live  in  Paris,  the  communica- 
tion with  Sevres  being  very  difficult. 

The  day  we  arrived  was  that  on  which  the  first 
German  aeroplanes  appeared,  and  they  dropped  bombs 
near  the  St.  Lazare  station  just  as  we  were  alight- 
ing from  the  train.  For  some  time  after  that,  they 
carried  out  a  raid  above  Paris  every  Sunday. 

In  spite  of  the  disorganisation  of  his  whole  life, 
Metchnikoff  had  succeeded  in  resuming  his  work  to  a 
certain  extent.  He  took  advantage  of  an  oppor- 
tunity to  observe  an  old  dog  who  was  suffering  from 
diabetes,  and  hastened  to  examine  his  organs  as  soon 
as  he  died,  whilst  they  were  still  fresh.  He  had  for 
some  time  supposed  that  diabetes  might  be  an  in- 
fectious disease  ;  yet  he  was  unable  to  discover  any 
specific  microbe  either  in  the  humors  or  in  the  organs 
of  the  dog.  But  he  succeeded  in  provoking  symp- 
toms of  the  disease  (traces  of  sugar  in  the  urine)  in  a 
healthy  dog,  by  inoculating  him  with  the  pancreatic 
gland  of  the  diabetic  dog.  He  was  much  encouraged 
by  this  result,  and  would  have  liked  to  continue 
his  researches,  but  was  unable  to  do  so  because 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         247 

of  the  general  disorganisation  and  the  impossibility 
of  obtaining  animals  for  experiments.  He  had  to 
content  himself  with  continuing  his  memoir  on 
infantile  cholera  and  his  observations  on  the  silk- 
worm moth. 

As  he  was  almost  altogether  precluded  from 
laboratory  work,  he  began  to  write  a  study  on  "  The 
Founders  of  Modern  Medicine,"  in  order  to  demon- 
strate, by  concrete  examples,  the  importance  of 
positive  science  in  its  application  to  life.  This  is 
what  he  said  in  his  preface  to  the  book  : 

These  pages  were  written  under  special  circumstances.  If 
not  in  the  actual  hearing  of  guns,  it  was  in  expectation  of  it 
that  I  had  to  spend  several  weeks  in  my  Paris  laboratory, 
now  under  war  conditions.  These  meant  an  almost  complete 
cessation  of  any  scientific  activity  in  our  Institute. 

For  fear  of  a  lack  of  food,  the  animals  used  for  our  experi- 
ments had  been  killed,  which  deprived  us  of  the  possibility 
of  proceeding  with  our  researches. 

The  stables  of  the  Institute  were  filled  with  cows  who 
provided  milk  for  the  hospitals  and  children's  homes. 

The  greater  number  of  our  young  collaborators,  assistants, 
or  laboratory  attendants  were  mobilised,  and  only  the  female 
employees  and  old  men  remained.  One  of  the  latter,  I 
found  myself  in  the  impossibility  of  pursuing  my  investiga- 
tions and  in  possession  of  much  leisure.  I  made  use  of  it  to 
write  this  book  in  the  hope  that  it  might  be  helpful. 

It  is  not  intended  for  physicians,  for  they  know  all  that  is 
expounded  in  it,  but  for  young  men  who  are  seeking  a  scope 
for  their  activities. 

We  may  be  sure  that  the  insane  war  which  broke  out  in 
consequence  of  the  lack  of  knowledge  or  of  power  of  those 
who  should  have  watched  over  peace,  will  be  followed  by  a 
long  period  of  calm.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  this  unexampled 
butchery  will,  for  a  long  tune,  do  away  with  the  desire  for 
fighting,  and  that  soon  the  need  will  be  felt  of  a  more  rational 


248         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

activity.  Let  those  who  will  have  preserved  the  combative 
instinct  direct  it  towards  a  struggle,  not  against  human  beings, 
but  against  the  innumerable  microbes,  visible  or  invisible, 
which  threaten  us  on  all  sides  and  prevent  us  from  accom- 
plishing the  normal  and  complete  cycle  of  our  existence. 

The  results  acquired  by  the  progress  of  the  new  medical 
science  allow  us  to  hope  that,  in  a  more  or  less  distant  future, 
humanity  will  be  freed  from  the  principal  diseases  which 
oppress  it. 

After  describing  the  state  of  medical  science  before 
Pasteur,  Lister,  and  Koch,  MetchnikofE  compared 
with  it  modern  medicine,  created  by  these  three 
Founders,  and  showed  the  great  horizons  opened  by 
them  to  the  medicine  of  the  future. 

On  the  26th  of  September  1914,  whilst  we  were  still 
in  Paris,  he  had,  in  the  laboratory,  an  attack  of  tachy- 
cardia, which  lasted  three  hours  but  was  much  less 
violent  than  that  of  the  year  before.  The  winter, 
however,  passed  fairly  well  in  spite  of  the  emotions 
and  continuous  excitement  caused  by  the  war,  and  he 
had  no  other  attack  until  April  1915,  when  again  he 
had  a  slight  tachycardiac  crisis  of  a  short  duration. 
Yet  he  was  very  much  changed :  his  hair  was  much 
whiter,  his  movements  were  slow,  and  his  figure  bent. 
His  infectious  gaiety  and  vivacity  had  disappeared, 
but  he  remained  energetic  and  enthusiastic  in  his 
work,  and  gained  more  and  more  in  serenity. 

Little  children  in  the  street  called  him  "  Father 
Christmas,"  and  came  confidingly  to  ask  him  for 
presents.  They  knew  him  well,  and  were  aware  that 
his  pockets  were  always  filled  with  sweets  for  them. 
He  used  to  say  that  his  growing  love  for  children 
was  the  revelation  of  the  grandfatherly  instinct,  for 
which  he  had  reached  the  proper  age.  He  especially 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         249 

loved  one  of  his  god-daughters,  little  Lili ;  he  had 
become  attached  to  the  child  on  account  of  her  kind 
heart  and  exceptional  sweetness,  and  also  because, 
from  the  cradle,  she  had  shown  a  marked  preference 
for  him.  And  yet  his  love  for  children  was  not  to 
him  a  source  of  joy,  for  anxiety  on  their  account  pre- 
dominated over  other  feelings. 

In  spite  of  the  physical  change  which  had  super- 
vened, his  brain  continued  to  work  untiringly  as  in 
the  past,  and  he  tackled  new  problems  with  youthful 
courage  and  boldness.  He  had  planned  a  work  on 
the  sexual  question,  which,  according  to  him,  was 
treated  erroneously,  with  the  result  that  grave  dis- 
harmonies occurred  in  human  existence. 

Thus  he  reached  some  quite  revolutionary  con- 
clusions respecting  education  and  marriage.  He 
thought  that  morality  should  be  set  upon  a  quite 
different  basis,  new  and  rational ;  and  that  was  the 
question  which  he  prepared  to  treat. 

The  16th  of  May  of  that  year  was  his  seventieth 
anniversary. 

His  satisfaction  was  great  at  having  reached  the 
normal  limit,  of  age,  for  he  saw  in  that  a  conclusive 
proof  of  the  efficacy  of  his  hygiene.  Indeed,  he 
showed  on  that  day  a  sort  of  rejuvenation  :  his  aspect 
was  quite  different,  he  was  gay  and  animated  as  he 
had  not  been  for  a  long  time. 

The  Pasteur  Institute  celebrated  his  jubilee.  In 
spite  of  the  absence  from  "  The  House  "  of  many 
members  on  account  of  the  war,  the  library  filled  with 
people,  and  the  fete  had  a  cordial  and  intimate 
character.  Dr.  Roux's  speech  1  will  remain  the  best 
description  of  E.  Metchnikoff  and  of  his  scientific 

1  Annals  de  Vlnttitut  Pasteur,  Jubil6  d'E.  Metchnikoff,  1915. 


250         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

activity.  He  himself  responded  to  all  those  mani- 
festations of  sympathy  by  a  spirited  speech,  in  which, 
a  propos  of  his  own  particular  case,  he  expounded  his 
ideas  on  senility  and  the  duration  of  life  in  general. 
This  is  what  he  wrote  on  that  same  day  in  his  note- 
book : 

16th  May  1915.  To-day  I  have  at  last  accomplished  my 
seventy  years !  I  have  attained  the  normal  limit  of  life,  a 
limit  mentioned  by  King  David  and  confirmed  by  the  statisti- 
cal researches  of  Lexis  and  Bodio.1  I  am  still  capable  of 
work  and  of  reflection.  But  the  changes  in  my  psychical 
state  which  I  had  observed  a  year  ago  have  become  sensibly 
accentuated.  The  difference  in  acuteness  both  of  pleasant 
and  painful  sensations  is  becoming  more  and  more  marked. 
Agreeable  sensations  are  becoming  weaker ;  I  am  now  in- 
different to  many  things  which  I  used  to  appreciate  very 
much. 

It  is  useless  to  say  that  I  am  indifferent  to  the  quality  of 
my  food ;  my  need  of  musical  impressions  has  become  so 
much  less  that  I  hardly  feel  the  desire  to  satisfy  it.  The 
charm  of  spring  no  longer  touches  me  and  only  provokes 
sadness  in  my  mind. 

On  the  other  hand,  my  anxiety  for  the  health  and  happiness 
of  those  I  love  is  getting  more  and  more  acute.  I  find  it 
difficult  to  understand  how  I  ever  could  bear  it. 

The  powerlessness  of  medicine  grieves  me  more  and  more, 
and,  as  a  last  straw,  the  war  has  interrupted  all  the  work  that 
had  been  undertaken  against  disease.  In  these  conditions,  it 
is  not  astonishing  that  I  should  feel  a  growing  satiety  with 
existence.  Last  year  [16th  May  1914  to  16th  May  1915]  I 
had  two  attacks  of  tachycardia,  during  which  I  should  have 
been  glad  to  die,  but  in  general  my  health  is  satisfactory  and 
that  sustains  me.  What  would  have  become  of  me  if,  to 
crown  my  misfortunes,  I  had  fallen  ill !  I  certainly  no  longer 
fear  death,  but  I  desire  to  die  suddenly  during  a  heart  attack 
and  not  to  go  through  a  long  illness. 

1  Annales  de  I'Institut  Pasteur,  1915. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         251 

My  comparative  longevity  is  not  due  to  family  heredity 
(my  father  died  in  his  68th  year,  my  mother  in  her  66th,  my 
sister  also,  my  eldest  brother  at  45,  my  second  brother  at  50, 
the  third  in  his  57th  year  ;  my  grandparents  I  have  not  known). 
It  is  to  my  hygiene  that  I  give  the  credit  for  having  attained 
my  70  years  in  a  satisfactory  condition.  I  have  taken  no  raw 
food  for  eighteen  years  and  I  introduce  as  many  lactic  bacilli 
as  possible  into  my  intestines.  But  it  is  but  a  first  step  ;  in 
spite  of  all,  I  am  being  poisoned  by  the  bacteria  of  butyric 
fermentation.  However,  I  have  practically  reached  the  normal 
term  of  life  and  I  must  be  satisfied.  I  have,  so  to  speak, 
accomplished  the  program  me  of  a  "  reduced  orthobiosis." 

When  macrobiotics  become  more  perfect,  when  people  have 
learnt  how  to  cultivate  a  suitable  flora  in  the  intestines  of 
children  as  soon  as  they  are  weaned  from  their  mother's 
breast,  the  normal  limit  of  life  will  be  put  much  further  back 
and  may  extend  to  twice  my  70  years.  Then,  also,  satiety 
with  existence  will  appear  much  later  than  it  has  done  in 
my  case. 

To-day  they  celebrated  my  jubilee  at  the  Pasteur  Institute, 
which  touched  me  very  much,  in  spite  of  my  distrust  of  senti- 
mental manifestations,  for  I  realised  their  sincerity.  I  should 
have  liked  to  set  out  a  programme  of  the  researches  which 
should  be  accomplished  by  the  Pasteur  Institute,  but  I  feared 
to  detain  my  audience  too  long. 

I  believe  that  Science  will  solve  all  the  principal  problems 
of  Life  and  Death  and  that  she  will  enable  human  beings  to 
accomplish  their  vital  cycle  by  real  orthobiosis,  not  by  a 
reduced  caricature  of  it  as  in  my  case.  Nevertheless,  I  con- 
sider the  experiment  practised  upon  myself  as  having  already 
given  some  result  and  that  is  to  me  a  real  satisfaction. 

We  spent  that  summer  a  few  weeks  at  Norka, 
where  Metchnikofl  completed  his  researches  con- 
cerning the  death  of  the  silk-worm  moth. 

We  went  for  delicious  walks ;  we  spent  all  the 
afternoon  by  the  lake  or  under  the  pines  in  the 
heather,  reading  and  working.  Once  only,  during  a 


252          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

walk,  lie  had  a  strong  cardiac  intermittence,  but  as 
a  rule  he  felt  well.  I  could  see,  however,  that  he  was 
obsessed  by  a  grave  preoccupation  which  he  did  not 
express.  Later,  during  his  last  illness,  he  confessed 
to  me  that  during  the  whole  of  that  stay  at  St.  Leger 
he  had  feared  to  die  suddenly  during  one  of  our  walks. 
The  thought  of  my  isolation  weighed  on  his  mind  and 
he  hid  his  anxiety  so  as  not  to  alarm  me.  .  .  . 

With  a  view  to  the  work  which  he  had  planned  on 
the  sexual  question,  he  interested  himself  in  the 
influence  that  their  sentimental  life  had  had  on  the 
activity  of  great  men,  and  we  read  together  the 
biographies  of  Beethoven,  Mozart,  and  Wagner. 
Elie  was  more  than  ever  desirous  of  making  our 
holidays  as  pleasant  as  possible,  as  if  he  already  felt 
that  they  were  our  last.  Here  are  more  extracts  from 
his  note-book : 

ST.  LEGEB-EN-YVELINES,  24*A  June  1916. 

When  saying  that  I  did  not  fear  death,  I  had  in  view  the 
dread  of  annihilation.  That  fear,  manifested  during  a  long 
period  of  life  and  disappearing  towards  the  end,  may  be  com- 
pared with  the  fear  of  darkness  which  children  instinctively 
feel  and  which  also  disappears  gradually  and  naturally.  When, 
towards  the  end  of  life,  the  fear  of  nothingness  ceases,  no 
desire  remains  for  a  future  life,  for  the  immortality  of  the 
soul.  It  would  even  be  painful  to  me  to  think  that  the  soul, 
surviving  the  body,  could  watch,  from  beyond,  the  misfortunes 
of  those  who  remain  on  the  earth.  On  the  contrary,  towards 
life's  decline,  a  desire  for  complete  annihilation  becomes 
developed. 

He  spent  the  autumn  collecting  and  preparing 
the  materials  he  required  for  his  book  on  the  sexual 
function.  It  was  a  relief  from  the  sad  impressions 
of  the  war  and  the  deserted  laboratory.  But  new 
troubles  were  in  store  for  us  ;  I  became  ill,  and  had 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          253 

scarcely  recovered  when  we  heard  the  news  of  the 
death  of  a  nephew  who  was  very  dear  to  us.  The 
death  of  the  young  had  always  deeply  moved  Metchni- 
koff,  and  it  was  so  in  this  case.  It  was  another 
weight  thrown  into  the  already  descending  scale. 

In  spite  of  all,  he  continued  to  work  with  enthusi- 
asm, planting  young  trees  that  future  generations 
might  enjoy  their  shade. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI 

Bronchial  cold — Aggravated  cardiac  symptoms — Farewell  to  Sevres — 
Return  to  the  Institute — Protracted  sufferings — Intellectual  pre- 
occupations— Observations  on  his  own  condition — The  end — 
Cremation. 

IF  in  this  sad  last  chapter  I  occasionally  dwell  on 
details  which  may  seem  insignificant  in  themselves, 
it  is  because,  at  this  supreme  moment  of  Elie  Metchni- 
koff's  existence,  everything  was  full  of  significance,  for 
everything  converged  to  emphasise  the  powerful 
unity  and  the  ascending  and  continuous  progress  of 
his  ideas. 

His  attitude  in  the  face  of  illness  and  death  was  a 
teaching,  a  support,  and  an  example.  That  is  why, 
relating  the  story  of  his  last  days,  I  piously  describe 
everything. 

Towards  the  end  of  November,  he  caught  a  slight 
cold,  which  did  not  prevent  him  from  leading  his 
usual  life,  but  which,  nevertheless,  was  the  starting- 
point  of  the  illness  which  took  him  from  us. 

On  the  2nd  of  December,  during  a  walk,  he  suddenly 
felt  a  cardiac  commotion  such  that  he  thought  he 
was  dying.  For  hours,  his  pulse  remained  inter- 
mittent and  very  rapid,  and  from  that  day  he  felt 
unwell  but  continued  to  go  to  the  laboratory. 

On  the  9th  of  December  his  condition  became  worse 
and  forced  him  to  interrupt  his  normal  life.  All  the 
doctors  were  away  or  very  busy  on  account  of  the  war, 

254 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         255 

and  it  was  only  on  the  1 1th  that  Dr.  Eenon  could  give 
him  a  consultation  at  the  Laennec  Hospital.  He  found 
Metchnikoff's  heart  very  tired  and  nervous,  prescribed  a 
treatment,  and  told  us  to  come  back  in  twenty-five  days. 

But  the  disease  was  making  giant  strides.  In  the 
night  of  the  12th  to  13th  a  first  attack  of  cardiac 
asthma  supervened,  an  extremely  painful  one ;  we 
had  the  impression  that  the  end  was  near.  Elie 
suffered  agonies  but  remained  morally  calm  and 
ready  for  death,  as  he  had  ever  been  since  his  first 
heart  attack,  two  years  previously.  He  repeated  that 
he  had  accomplished  his  task  and  run  through  his 
vital  cycle  ;  that  what  he  could  yet  do  would  be  but 
a  supplement,  and  that  it  was  better  to  die  than  to 
outlive  his  own  decadence. 

He  only  wished  not  to  suffer  too  long,  but  that 
humble  desire  was  not  to  be  realised.  We  spent  two 
more  nights  at  Sevres,  terrible  nights  not  to  be 
forgotten  if  one  had  centuries  to  live,  and  we  then 
decided  to  go  to  a  nursing  home  in  Paris,  as  it  was 
imprudent  to  remain  any  longer  isolated  as  we  were. 

Having  heard  of  Metchnikoff's  illness,  Dr.  Koux 
offered  to  receive  us  at  the  Pasteur  Institute  in  a 
small  lodging  which  was  now  free,  the  house-physician 
who  had  occupied  it  having  been  killed. 

Dr.  Widal,  in  whom  Metchnikoff  had  absolute  con- 
fidence, came  to  Sevres  on  the  14th  and  found  myo- 
carditis. Thanks  to  an  absolutely  incomprehensible 
phenomenon,  Elie  had  suddenly  ceased  to  realise  the 
rapidity  of  his  pulse ;  he  had  160  beats  in  a  minute 
and  only  perceived  less  than  half ;  it  was  therefore 
easy  to  keep  the  truth  from  him. 

After  a  last  night  of  suffering  we  left  our  Sevres 
nest,  which  we  had  so  loved.  Leaning  on  my  arm, 


256          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

he  slowly  walked  through  the  little  garden  and  gazed 
for  the  last  time  at  the  home  that  we  were  leaving 
for  the  unknown.  .  .  .  He  looked  worn  and  bent 
under  the  weight  of  suffering,  but  he  was  quite  calm, 
and  his  eyes,  though  firm  and  gentle,  already  seemed 
to  me  to  be  looking  very  far  away. 

The  automobile  bore  us  slowly  from  Sevres  to  the 
Pasteur  Institute,  and  we  found  ourselves  in  the 
small  flat  which  had  been  inhabited  by  the  young 
doctor  who  had  been  killed  in  the  war.  He  had  only 
spent  a  short  stage  of  his  life  there.  How  long  should 
we  remain  ?  And  what  road  should  we  take  when 
we  left  it  ?  We  tried  to  smile,  though  our  hearts 
were  terribly  heavy,  in  order  to  cheer  each  other. 

But,  in  the  course  of  the  day,  we  were  surrounded 
by  friends  full  of  solicitude,  the  tension  relaxed,  and 
we  felt  a  growing  sense  of  comfort  and  security.  No 
more  nights  of  mortal  dread  and  loneliness,  with  no 
help  at  hand  !  That  thought  alone  inspired  courage 
and  hope.  In  case  of  need,  I  had  only  to  send  down 
to  the  next  floor  to  ask  for  a  doctor. 

For  a  few  days,  Elie  felt  much  better,  perhaps  on 
account  of  the  mental  relief,  but  his  heart  was  weak 
and  his  pulse  extremely  rapid.  Drs.  Widal,  Martin, 
Veillon,  Salimbeni,  and  Darre  came  to  see  him  every 
day  ;  during  the  whole  of  his  long  illness,  they  never 
ceased  to  show  him  the  most  attentive  and  devoted 
care.  They  attempted  by  every  means  to  save  him 
from  pain,  for,  alas,  they  had  no  hope  of  curing  him. 
Nothing  was  neglected,  and  many  still  greater  suffer- 
ings were  spared  him.1 

1  For  instance,  Dr.  Widal,  very  early  in  his  illness,  had  advised  a  saltless 
diet,  which  caused  the  infiltration  in  the  tissues  to  remain  comparatively 
slight. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         257 

The  war  was  an  inexhaustible  and  passionately 
interesting  subject  of  conversation ;  Elie  read  a 
number  of  newspapers  and  listened  with  avidity  to 
every  news  from  private  sources.  Often,  too,  scien- 
tific questions  were  discussed,  which  continued  to 
interest  him  intensely.  These  talks  were  an  in- 
valuable relaxation. 

Feeling  infinitely  grateful  towards  his  medical 
advisers  and  friends,  he  showed  himself  a  most  docile 
patient,  following  their  prescriptions  with  absolute 
punctuality.  When  his  condition  grew  worse  and 
he  felt  no  hope  whatever  of  his  recovery,  he  often 
used  to  say,  "  What  is  to  be  done  ?  the  doctors  can 
do  nothing,  for  medicine  is  powerless.  Unhappily, 
it  will  remain  so  for  a  long  time.  Much  work  will 
have  to  be  done  to  rid  humanity  of  the  scourge  of 
diseases.  But,  surely,  one  day  science  will  succeed 
in  doing  so  ;  that  will  be  chiefly  through  prophylaxis 
and  rational  hygiene.  There  will  also  be  a  new 
science — the  science  of  death  ;  it  will  be  known  how 
to  make  it  less  hard." 

After  lunch  and  a  short  sleep,  he  received  the  daily 
visit  of  his  friend  Dr.  Roux,  with  whom  he  talked  in 
the  full  intimacy  of  friendship  and  affection.  He 
confided  to  him  his  apprehensions  and  desires,  and 
felt  unlimited  gratitude  for  his  kindness  to  us,  often 
saying  to  me,  with  tears  in  his  eyes,  "  I  knew  Roux 
was  a  kind  man  and  a  true  friend,  but  I  see  now  that 
he  is  incomparable."  Other  friends  also  did  their 
utmost  to  serve  him  and  to  show  their  sympathy. 
He  had  the  great  joy  of  feeling  himself  beloved  and 
surrounded  with  an  atmosphere  of  real  kindness. 
Many  times  he  said  to  me,  "  Now,  only,  have  I 
appreciated  the  warm-heartedness  of  the  French 


258         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

at  its  full  value.  Do  not  fail,  in  my  biography,  to 
emphasise  how  deeply  I  feel  it,  and  how  grateful  I 
am.  I  want  them  to  know  it." 

Yet  all  the  care  and  devotion  of  which  he  was  the 
object  could  neither  arrest  the  fatal  progress  of  disease 
nor  spare  cruel  suffering  to  him'  who  had  thought  of 
nothing  but  relieving  the  pains  of  others.  All  our 
efforts  were  as  flowers  scattered  over  a  tomb  ;  he, 
poor  tortured  one,  was  slowly,  consciously  sinking 
into  it  through  the  implacable  logic  of  Fate.  From 
the  beginning  of  his  illness,  he  foresaw  the  issue  ;  he 
lived  in  constant  expectation  of  death,  on  the  threshold 
of  which  his  calm  and  serenity  remained  as  unalter- 
able as  were  his  patience  and  resignation. 

After  a  temporary  and  comparative  lull,  which 
lasted  until  the  end  of  December,  the  disease  began 
to  progress  again,  and  almost  every  week  brought  a 
fresh  alarming  symptom.  It  was  especially  during 
the  night  that  the  pain,  treacherously,  reappeared. 
After  dropping  asleep  fairly  early,  he  would  begin  to 
breathe  with  difficulty  and  then  awake  in  an  inde- 
scribable state  of  anguish  ;  perspiration  drenched  his 
head,  neck,  and  chest,  several  towels  often  being 
required  to  dry  him.  His  breathing  was  hard ; 
during  bad  attacks,  the  wheezing  of  his  bronchial 
tubes  was  terrifying. 

He  would  sit  up,  his  hands  clenched,  his  face  blue 
and  contracted  by  suffering,  his  darkened  lips  apart, 
his  eyes  dilated — the  face  of  a  man  on  the  rack.  He 
gasped  like  a  suffocating  man ;  at  last  a  tearing 
cough  supervened,  followed  by  expectoration,  and 
the  attack  gradually  subsided. 

For  a  time  we  were  able  to  relieve  him  without  the 
use  of  narcotics.  As  long  as  there  was  a  ray  of  hope 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         259 

— not  of  recovery,  but  of  a  bearable  life  and  further 
work — he  wished  at  all  costs  to  avoid  the  influence  of 
narcosis.  He  breathed  fumes  of  pyridin  or  ether,  he 
smoked  Escouflaire  cigarettes,  and  inhaled  various 
other  things.  In  order  to  sleep  after  an  attack,  he 
ate  a  few  biscuits,  and  I  sprinkled  his  head  with  a 
menthol  solution,  with  which  I  damped  his  temples 
and  forehead.  That  eased  him,  and  sometimes  he 
slept  again  for  a  few  hours. 

But  how  many  were  the  nights  of  insomnia  and 
suffering !  How  many  times  did  he  call  for  death 
as  a  deliverer,  and  say  that  he  resigned  himself  to 
live  for  my  sake  only  ! 

And  in  spite  of  the  martyrdom  he  endured,  he 
always  had  gentle  words,  a  caress,  a  consolation 
even !  He  constantly  returned  to  the  thought  that 
he  had  nothing  to  complain  of,  that  he  had  had  a 
large  share  of  happiness  and  good  fortune  in  having 
accomplished  his  task,  and  even  arrived  at  the  de- 
velopment of  the  natural  death-instinct. 

All  those  who  saw  him  every  day  knew  that  he 
was  courageous  and  patient,  every  one  admired  his 
serenity,  but  no  one  could  realise  the  degree  of  his 
courage  and  patience,  for  no  one  had  seen  and  lived 
through  those  miserable  nights. 

Often,  even,  when  asked  how  he  was,  he  said  "  not 
bad  !  "  after  a  terrible  night,  saying  to  me  afterwards 
in  explanation,  "  Why  grieve  them,  since  it  cannot 
be  helped  ?  " 

At  the  beginning  of  our  stay  in  the  Institute,  he 
was  not  yet  quite  bedridden.  After  his  morning 
toilet,  he  would  lie  for  some  hours  on  a  sofa,  reading 
almost  continuously,  newspapers,  scientific  reviews, 
and  many  works  in  connection  with  the  book  he  had 


260         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

planned  on  the  sexual  function,  of  which  he  wrote 
only  the  introduction  and  a  few  lines  of  the  first 
chapter.1 

Another  question  occupied  him  at  that  time,  that 
of  first-born  children.  Certain  data  led  him  to  think 
that  men  of  genius  were  but  rarely  the  first-born  of 
their  parents,  and  he  sought  for  every  possible 
information  on  the  subject.  In  his  constant  desire 
to  improve  life-conditions,  he  even  thought  that  a 
demonstration  of  this  fact  might  have  a  desirable 
influence  on  the  increase  of  population  in  France 
after  the  war  ;  if  it  were  proved  that  the  most  success- 
ful children  are  not  the  first-born,  perhaps  the  system 
of  having  two  children  only  would  be  given  up  in 
order  to  have  a  chance  of  giving  the  country  a  more 
capable  population. 

His  reflections  on  the  sexual  questions  led  him  to 
seek  for  experimental  means  of  studying  gonorrhoea. 
He  thought  of  inoculating  the  gonococcus  into  the  eye 
of  new-born  mice  and  entrusted  M.  Rubinstein,  the 
only  worker  left  in  the  laboratory,  with  these  experi- 
ments. The  latter  began  them  and  obtained  en- 
couraging results,  but  he  left  Paris  in  the  spring  and 
the  work  remained  unfinished. 

MetchnikofTs  mind  never  ceased  to. work  unless 

1  He  expounded  the  theory  that  ideas  on  the  sexual  function  had  been 
falsified  through  fear  of  venereal  diseases  at  a  time  when  people  did  not  know 
either  how  to  avoid  or  cure  those  diseases.  He  showed  that  the  condem- 
nation of  a  natural  function  by  divers  religions  was  based  on  that  fear.  He 
analysed  the  deplorable  consequences  of  that,  and  set  forth  the  necessity  of 
returning  to  more  wholesome  ideas,  more  in  conformity  with  nature  and 
allowing  the  study  and  avoidance  of  many  evils.  He  thought  that,  in  this 
connection,  a  new  direction  should  be  given  to  the  education  of  children 
and  to  marriage.  He  then  examined  the  part  played  by  the  sexual  function 
in  the  lives  of  men  of  genius  and,  with  that  object,  read  many  biographies 
and  literary  works.  During  his  illness  he  read  books  concerning  Victor 
Hugo  and  Napoleon,  J.  J.  Rousseau's  Confessions  and  even  parts  of  the 
Nouvdle  Heloise. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         261 

interrupted  by  acute  pain ;  until  the  very  end,  his 
brain  never  failed  him.  He  often  used  to  say 
how  far  he  was  from  any  mystic  aspirations,  and 
how  sure  he  was  of  remaining  a  rationalist 
until  the  end.  And  such  was  the  case.  Faithful 
to  himself,  not  even  in  the  most  painful  moments 
did  he  feel  a  desire  to  look  for  support  outside 
the  ideas  and  principles  of  his  whole  life.  Yet 
his  soul  was  sad  and  full  of  care ;  the  war  grieved 
him  utterly,  every  newspaper  he  read  renewed  his 
sorrow.  When  a  severe  engagement,  Verdun  for 
instance,  was  going  on,  he  lost  the  little  sleep  he  had, 
and  his  agitation  became  painful. 

He  was  deeply  disillusioned  by  the  Germans. 
Having  always  felt  great  esteem  for  their  scientific 
work,  he  had  believed  in  their  high  culture,  and  now 
he  was  absolutely  disconcerted  by  the  mentality 
which  they  manifested  during  the  war. 

Neither  could  he  understand  how  the  war  had 
been  allowed  to  come  about.  He  thought  it  ought 
to  have  been  avoided,  and  considered  the  authorities 
guilty  for  not  having  done  so.  He  said  that  nothing 
could  compensate  the  harm  done  by  this  insane 
butchery. 

The  deserted  laboratories,  the  interruption  of 
scientific  work,  filled  his  soul  with  melancholy.  For, 
he  said,  all  the  great,  all  the  real  questions  should 
have  been  solved  by  Science  and  were  kept  waiting. . . . 

He  also  had  material  worries,  the  war  having 
brought  great  perturbation  in  his  affairs.  The  fate 
of  his  mobilised  pupils  preoccupied  him  constantly. 
The  least  indisposition,  however  trifling,  of  those  he 
loved  made  him  unhappy.  His  sensibility,  which  had 
always  been  very  marked,  increased  still  more,  and 


262         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

consumed  him  ;  it  surely  was  one  of  the  causes  that 
had  worn  his  heart  out.  When  already  very  weak 
and  ill,  he  constantly  thought  of  giving  pleasure  to 
those  who  were  with  him ;  he  read  innumerable 
reviews  and  periodicals,  and  would  tell  each  friend 
what  he  had  found  of  particular  interest  to  the  latter, 
even  when  speech  was  difficult  to  him.  His  gentle- 
ness and  cordiality  were  most  touching  during  the 
whole  of  his  illness,  though  he  preserved  his  usual 
outspokenness.  ...  It  seemed  to  me  that  this 
offended  no  one  ;  they  all  understood  Elie  now. 

He  sought  a  refuge  from  his  sufferings  in  his  own 
ivory  tower  ;  these  sufferings  themselves  were  to  him 
a  source  of  observations.  He  studied  his  body  and 
his  soul  as  he  would  have  studied  any  subject  under 
experiment.  Every  day  he  wrote  down  his  auto- 
observations,  and  carefully  read  the  diary  which  I 
kept  for  him. 

During  the  whole  of  the  winter  he  had  ups  and 
downs.  Towards  the  end  of  December  the  cough  and 
respiratory  symptoms  increased,  and  at  the  beginning 
of  January  he  expectorated  clots  of  blood,  due  to 
a  passive  congestion  of  the  right  lung. 

On  the  19th  January,  some  liquid  appeared  in  the 
pleura  on  the  same  side.  Pleurisy  persisted  for  a 
whole  month  and  necessitated  three  punctures. 
Every  time  we  feared  to  tell  him  that  the  puncture 
was  necessary,  but  he  received  the  news  with  com- 
plete coolness,  saying  that  he  had  always  been  in 
favour  of  radical  measures. 

After  the  third  puncture,  which  took  place  on  the 
19th  February,  a  marked  relief  supervened,  and  the 
improvement  lasted  for  some  time  ;  it  was  the  only 
moment  when  we  saw  a  ray  of  hope. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF          263 

Though  keeping  to  his  bed,  he  worked  a  great  deal, 
read,  and  received  not  only  his  friends  but  other 
visitors.  At  the  beginning  of  March  and  at  the  end 
of  April  he  again  expectorated  blood,  and  the  terrible, 
tragical  nights  began  again.  Yet  the  days  were 
fairly  good. 

During  that  period,  he  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
some  of  his  pupils  again,  and  of  receiving  several 
Russian  deputies  and  journalists.  They  talked  to 
him  of  political  events,  of  the  war,  of  the  moral  state 
of  Russia.  All  that  interested  him  irnmp.Tisp.1y ;  he 
plied  them  with  the  most  varied  questions.  It  must 
be  remembered  that,  before  that  interview,  we  had 
lost  all  touch  with  Russia. 

During  the  whole  of  May  he  again  had  ups  and 
downs,  but  the  progress  of  the  disease  was  indisput- 
able. 

Tachycardia  was  constant,  urine  more  and  more 
scanty,  the  swelling  of  the  legs  never  decreased,  cough 
and  oppression  occurred  frequently  even  during  the 
day.  Elie  awaited  his  seventy-first  birthday  with 
impatience.  Often  during  the  night,  after  a  painful 
attack,  he  would  count  the  days,  hours,  and  minutes 
which  separated  him  from  that  date.  At  last  it 
arrived.  Here  are  the  lines  which  he  added  to  his 
notes  on  that  day  : 

16th  May.  Against  all  expectation,  I  have  lived  until 
this  day.  I  have  reached  my  71  years.  My  dream  of  a  rapid 
death,  without  a  long  illness  has  not  been  realised.  I  have 
now  been  bedridden  for  five  months.  After  several  crises  of 
tachycardia,  following  upon  a  slight  grippe  with  asthma,  I 
had  congestion  of  one  lung  with  pleuritic  exudate.  Though 
some  improvement  followed  after  that,  nevertheless  I  am 
tormented  by  fits  of  sweating  followed  by  cough  and  oppres- 


264         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

sion.  I  suffer  chiefly  in  the  night  from  those  attacks ; 
they  provoke  insomnia  which  can  only  be  combated  by 
pantopon. 

My  psychical  state  is  twofold.  In  one  way,  I  should  like 
to  get  well,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  I  see  no  sense  in  living 
any  longer.  Illness  has  not  provoked  in  me  any  fear  of 
death,  and  I  am  more  deprived  than  formerly  of  the  joy  of 
living.  The  reawakening  of  spring  leaves  me  quite  indifferent. 
There  can  be  no  question  for  me  of  that  pleasure  which  con- 
valescents often  feel,  nor  indeed  of  any  pleasure.  To  the 
despair  that  I  feel  in  the  face  of  medicine's  powerlessness  to 
cure  the  ills  of  my  friends  is  added  the  feeling  of  its  powerless- 
ness  towards  my  own  illness.  I  think  that  my  desire  to  re- 
cover and  to  continue  to  live  is  connected  with  practical 
causes. 

The  war  has  compromised  our  finances,  our  income  from 
Russia  has  practically  disappeared.  If  I  die,  my  wife  may 
find  herself  in  a  very  difficult  situation.  Given  her  lack  of 
practical  notions,  that  may  lead  to  very  sad  results.  Yet  it 
is  quite  impossible  to  straighten  our  affairs  before  the  end  of 
the  war  and  the  re-establishment  of  normal  conditions. 

These  were  the  last  words  he  wrote  in  his  book  of 
notes  ;  his  hand  had  become  weak  and  trembling  ; 
he  tired  very  soon,  and  henceforth  I  wrote  under  his 
dictation.  On  the  18th  June,  one  month  before  his 
cremation,  he  dictated  to  me  for  the  last  time,  and 
this  is  what  he  said  : 

This  is  the  seventh  month  that  I  have  been  ill  and  it 
brings  my  thoughts  back  to  the  gravity  of  my  condition. 
I  therefore  continually  realise  how  much  satisfaction  I  have 
derived  from  life  during  my  long  years.  The  gradual  disap- 
pearance of  my  "life-instinct,"  which  already  began  a  few 
years  ago,  is  now  more  marked,  more  precise.  I  no  longer 
feel  that  degree  of  pleasure  which  I  felt  only  a  few  years  ago. 
My  affection  for  my  nearest  and  dearest  shows  itself  much  more 
by  the  anxiety  and  suffering  provoked  by  their  diseases  and 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         265 

sorrows  than  by  the  pleasure  I  derive  from  their  joys  or 
normal  health. 

Those  to  whom  I  describe  my  feelings  tell  me  that  satiety 
with  living  is  not  normal  at  my  age.  To  that  I  oppose  the 
following  :  Longevity,  at  least  to  a  certain  point,  is  hereditary. 
Now  I  have  already  mentioned,  on  the  occasion  of  my  70th 
anniversary,  that  my  parents,  sister,  and  brothers  died  before 
reaching  my  present  age.  I  knew  neither  of  my  grand- 
parents, which  shows  that  they  could  not  have  been  very  old 
when  they  died. 

Let  us  now  turn  to  the  profession,  since  it  is  an  established 
fact  that  it  has  an  influence  on  the  duration  of  life.  Pasteur 
died  at  72,  but  for  a  long  time  he  had  been  unable  to  do 
scientific  work.  Koch  did  not  reach  the  age  of  67.  Other 
bacteriologists  died  at  a  much  earlier  age  than  I  (Duclaux, 
Nocard,  Chamberland,  Ehrlich,  Buchner,  Loeffler,  Pfeifier, 
Carl  Fraenkel,  Emmerich,  Escherich). 

Among  those  bacteriologists  of  my  generation  who  are  still 
living  the  majority  have  already  ceased  from  working.  All 
that  should  indicate  that  my  scientific  life  is  over  and  confirm 
at  the  same  time  the  fact  that  my  "  orthobiosis  "  has  actually 
reached  the  desirable  limit. 

He  was  anxious  to  prove  that  his  end,  which 
seemed  premature  at  first  sight,  did  not  contradict 
his  theories,  but  had  deep  causes  such  as  heredity 
and  the  belated  introduction  of  a  rational  diet.  He 
had  only  begun  to  follow  it  at  fifty-three.  Facts 
corroborated  him  after  his  death,  for  the  post-mortem 
examination  showed  that  the  heart  lesions  were  of 
long  standing.  He  himself  thought  they  went  back 
at  least  to  1881,  when  he  had  had  a  very  grave 
relapsing  fever.  The  doctors  even  wondered  how  he 
had  lived  with  his  heart  in  such  a  state,  and  only 
accounted  for  it  by  the  strict  regime  which  he  had 
followed  during  the  latter  part  of  his  life. 

And  indeed  when  it  is  remembered  how  pugna- 


266         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

cious,  how  vehement  he  was — always,  so  to  speak, 
in  a  state  of  ebullition,  feverishly  active,  intensely 
sensitive — it  must  be  admitted  that  his  life  really 
held  more  than  an  ordinary  life  of  longer  duration. 

He  was  very  desirous  that  the  example  of  his 
serenity  in  the  face  of  death  should  be  encouraging 
and  comforting.  It  should  prove  that,  at  the  end  of 
his  vital  cycle,  man  fears  death  no  longer ;  it  has 
lost  its  sting  for  him. 

Early  in  June  his  condition  became  still  worse. 
The  nights  were  so  painful  that,  every  evening,  recourse 
had  to  be  had  to  pantopon.1  It  was  with  the  greatest 
impatience  that  he  awaited  his  "  dear  Darre  and  dear 
Salimbeni,"  as  he  called  them. 

After  Dr.  Darre  had  finished  his  complete  and 
thorough  medical  examination,  we  three  remained 
talking  around  Elie's  bed  for  a  short  hour.  He  often 
recalled  his  personal  or  scientific  memories  when  he 
was  not  too  weary  ;  we  talked  of  the  war,  of  medical 
questions ;  often,  too,  we  would  evoke,  with  Salimbeni, 
recollections  of  our  journey  to  the  Kalmuk  Steppes. 

We  loved  that  peaceful  hour,  which  ended  by  an 
injection  of  pantopon,  the  only  relief,  alas,  that  could 
be  procured  for  him.  He  would  thank  Dr.  Darre  with 
gratitude,  and  drop  his  poor  weary  head  on  the  pillow, 
awaiting  in  absolute  security  the  blessed  sensation  of 
warm  heaviness  which  pervaded  him,  for  he  knew 
that  sleep  and  rest  from  his  sufferings  would  not  be 
long  in  coming.  The  spectre  of  tragical  nights  never 
ceased  to  haunt  us. 

Until  the  hot  weather  came,  he  was  quite  com- 
fortable in  the  small  flat  in  the  Pasteur  hospital ;  the 
temperature  there  had  been  perfectly  regular  all 

1  Pantopon  is  a  narcotic  drug  prepared  from  opium. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         267 

through  the  winter ;  but  now  he  began  to  be  incom- 
moded by  the  heat. 

M.  Roux  then  proposed  that  we  should  be  trans- 
ferred to  Pasteur's  old  flat ;  the  rooms  were  spacious 
and  much  cooler.  This  idea  rejoiced  and  touched 
Elie  very  much.  As  he  thanked  M.  Roux,  he  said  to 
him :  "  See  how  my  life  is  bound  with  the  Pasteur 
Institute.  I  have  worked  here  for  years ;  I  am 
nursed  here  during  my  illness  ;  in  order  to  complete 
the  connection  I  ought  to  be  incinerated  in  the  great 
oven  where  our  dead  animals  are  burnt,  and  my 
ashes  could  be  kept  in  an  urn  in  one  of  the  cupboards 
in  the  library."  "  What  a  gruesome  joke  !  "  answered 
M.  Roux,  really  taking  those  words  for  a  joke.  But 
directly  after  he  was  gone  Elie  turned  to  me  with  an 
anxious  look  and  said,  "  Well,  what  do  you  think  of 
my  idea  ?  "  I  saw  by  his  earnest  expression  that  he 
meant  what  he  said,  and  I  answered  that  I  thought  it 
a  very  good  idea.  The  Pasteur  Institute  had  become 
his  refuge,  the  centre  of  all  his  scientific  interests; 
he  loved  it ;  he  had  spent  his  best  years  there.  Let 
his  ashes  be  laid  there  some  day ;  it  would  be  in 
perfect  harmony  with  his  past.  Let  us  only  hope 
that  would  not  be  too  soon  !  But  why  had  he  given 
his  words  that  jesting  form  which  must  have  misled 
M.  Roux  ?  He  explained  it  to  me  :  knowing  how 
deeply  conscientious  his  friend  was,  he  did  not  wish 
to  express  his  desire  as  a  dying  wish  in  order  that  he 
should  feel  no  obligation.  A  simple  jest,  on  the 
contrary,  left  him  absolutely  free. 

On  the  26th  June,  Elie  was  carried  into  Pasteur's 
flat ;  it  was  a  very  great  satisfaction  to  him,  it  brought 
him  nearer  his  laboratory.  Now  and  then,  very 
seldom  now,  he  thought  he  might  return  there  one 


268         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

day ;  lie  said  I  should  wheel  him  there  in  his  bath 
chair.  "  I  know  I  could  scarcely  work  there  myself. 
But  perhaps  I  might  still  play  the  part  of  a  ferment, 
be  useful  to  my  pupils  by  giving  them  advice.  I  am 
leaving  so  much  unfinished  work  which  it  would  be 
interesting  to  go  on  with  :  the  question  of  intestinal 
flora,  that  of  diabetes,  which  surely  is  an  infectious 
disease — but  that  will  have  to  be  proved, — and  my 
experiments  on  the  subject  were  scarcely  begun.  I 
think  the  study  of  gonorrhoea  will  give  very  interesting 
results  when  they  succeed  in  inoculating  it  in  new- 
born animals.  And  the  question  of  tuberculosis  is 
well  started  !  I  could  still  help  my  pupils  and  en- 
courage them  if  I  were  a  little  better  !  .  .  .  But  I 
have  no  illusions !  I  must  live  now  only  from  day 
to  day.  .  .  ." 

Those  words  were  uttered  with  heart-rending 
resignation. 

He  continued  to  get  worse.  .  .  . 

It  was  fortunate  that  pantopon  should  have  given 
him  good  nights,  for  attacks  of  oppression  now  super- 
vened several  times  during  the  day  ;  tachycardia  was 
continuous,  the  heart  was  weakening.  The  quantity 
of  urine  diminished ;  it  often  did  not  surpass  250  cubic 
centimetres,  and  no  diuretic  succeeded  in  increasing 
it ;  the  legs  remained  swollen,  ascitis  was  beginning  to 
become  visible  ;  in  the  night  he  occasionally  grew 
slightly  delirious. 

At  the  beginning  of  July  he  wished  to  sit  up  ;  he 
spent  part  of  the  afternoon  in  an  armchair,  his  legs 
lying  on  cushions.  We  thought  it  was  a  good  sign, 
but  in  reality  he  found  it  difficult  to  breathe  lying 
down.  Several  times  he  asked  me  to  play  to  him, 
very  soft  music,  as  noisy  sounds  wearied  him.  I 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         269 

played  Mm  some  Beethoven,  some  Mozart ;  the  last 
time  it  was  a  Chopin  prelude. 

On  the  9th  his  temperature  went  down  in  an 
alarming  way  to  35 '2°  C.  (95  F.).  For  the  first  time 
he  would  not  write  down  his  ordinary  observations. 
"  What  is  the  good  ?  "  said  he,  "  it  has  no  longer  any 
interest."  Yet  the  next  day  he  did  so,  for  the  last 
time.  On  the  llth  and  12th  he  put  down  his  tem- 
perature, and  glanced  superficially  at  the  notes  I 
had  written.  On  the  12th,  about  five  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  he  had  a  bad  fit  of  breathlessness  followed 
by  coughing,  and  brought  up  large  clots  of  very  red 
blood.  He  smiled  faintly.  "  You  understand  what 
that  means,"  he  said,  adding  some  tender  words. 

I  wheeled  him  to  his  bed,  which  he  never  left  again. 

On  the  13th,  in  the  early  morning,  he  felt  very  ill. 
Calmly  and  gently  he  warned  me  to  be  ready.  "  It 
will  surely  be  to-day  or  to-morrow." 

My  heart  breaking,  I  asked  him  why  he  said  that ; 
was  he  feeling  very  weak  ?  or  suffering  very  much  ? 

"  No,"  he  said,  "  it  is  difficult  to  say  what  I  feel ; 
I  have  never  felt  anything  like  it ;  it  is,  so  to  speak,  a 
death-sensation.  .  .  .  But  I  feel  very  calm,  with  no 
fear.  You  will  hold  my  hand,  will  you  not  ?  " 

How  can  I  describe  those  last  three  days  ?  He 
preserved  all  his  lucidity  and  serenity,  often  smiling 
at  me  and  drawing  me  towards  him.  He  inhaled 
oxygen  very  often,  as  breathlessness  became  almost 
continuous. 

On  the  14th  there  was  to  be  a  matinee  perform- 
ance of  Manon  Lescaut,  and  remembering  that  his 
god-children  had  long  wished  to  see  that  opera,  he 
had  had  a  box  taken  for  them.  He  was  now  quite 
uneasy  about  it.  "  What  ill-luck,"  he  said,  "if  it 


270         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

happened  just  before  and  prevented  them  from 
going.  In  any  case  they  must  not  come  here  on 
their  way  to  the  theatre,  so  that  if  it  happens  they 
will  not  know,  and  can  still  enjoy  the  performance." 

Thanks  to  pantopon,  he  spent  a  very  good  night. 
He  awoke  about  five  o'clock,  but  remained  so  quiet 
that  I  thought  him  asleep.  When  I  rose  about  six 
he  held  out  his  hand  to  me  and  told  me  he  had  been 
awake  for  a  long  time.  He  talked  to  me  tenderly,  in 
the  full  intimacy  of  our  affection  ;  he  spoke  sweet, 
unforgettable  words.  He  made  me  promise  once 
again  not  to  give  way  to  grief.  "  At  first,  our  friends 
will  help  you,  and  then  work,  that  infallible  remedy, 
and  duty.  .  .  .  You  will  have  that  of  writing  my 
biography.  Remember  how  much  I  wish  the  last 
chapter  to  be  complete.  You  alone  can  write  it,  for 
you  have  seen  me  all  the  time  ;  I  have  told  you  all 
my  thoughts,  and  yet  ..."  I  understood  that  he 
had  occasionally,  out  of  pity  for  me,  hidden  his  suffer- 
ings and  his  sad  thoughts.  But  he  did  not  know  how 
often  I  guessed  what  he  did  not  say ;  love  and  pain 
have  a  dumb  language,  more  eloquent  than  any 
human  words. 

"  You  will  hold  my  hand  when  the  moment  comes," 
he  repeated.  "  But  do  not  think  I  am  afraid,  now 
that  it  is  near.  No,  I  assure  you,  I  have  an  absolute 
serenity  of  soul !  I  spent  a  divine  night.  It  seemed 
to  me  that  I  was  already  half  outside  life.  This  night 
has  taught  me  many  things.  .  .  .  Everything  which 
troubled  me,  everything  that  seemed  so  disturbing,  so 
terrible,  like  this  war  for  instance,  seems  so  transitory 
now,  such  a  small  thing  by  the  side  of  the  great 
problems  of  existence  !  .  .  .  Science  will  solve  them 
some  day."  He  ceased  speaking.  He  seemed 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         271 

illumined  by  a  very  exalted  feeling ;  it  was  like  the 
last  chord  of  his  harmonious  soul.  What  a  consolation 
if  he  could  have  died  then  ! 

But  life  is  cruel.  He  lived  through  two  more 
days  of  suffering.  On  the  14th  he  inhaled  oxygen 
almost  continually.  He  asked  for  pantopon,  but  we 
feared  to  give  him  too  much.  I  told  him  it  would 
induce  such  continuous  sleep  that  he  would  not  even 
be  able  to  enjoy  it.  "  But  an  eternal  sleep  is  pre- 
cisely what  I  want !  Do  understand  that  now 
nothing  is  left  to  me  but  pantopon.  What  is  the 
good  of  making  me  last  ?  Is  this  a  life  ?  A  few 
days  or  a  month  have  no  importance  when 
one  is  not  going  to  recover.  And  you  cannot 
wish  to  prolong  my  sufferings."  His  breathlessness 
increased  ;  he  said,  "  Give  me  your  hand  ;  stay  near 
me  !  "  I  knew  what  he  meant ;  he  had  the  "  death- 
sensation." 

His  poor  hands  were  hot  and  warmed  my  cold 
ones.  .  .  .  The  next  day  I  could  not  warm  his  hands, 
ice-cold  for  ever. 

The  whole  day  he  awaited  with  impatience  the 
hour  for  pantopon.  About  nine  o'clock,  when  Dr. 
Darre  came  in,  he  said,  "  Dear  Darre,  at  last !  " 

There  was  no  talk  that  evening,  he  was  so  weary. 
With  what  anguish  I  awaited  the  stroke  of  midnight, 
which  ended  those  two  dread  days  !  He  had  been 
mistaken  by  barely  one  day.  The  night  was  not  bad, 
in  spite  of  breathlessness  and  some  fits  of  coughing. 
The  next  morning  he  felt  better.  He  had  not  read 
the  papers  the  day  before,  to-day  I  read  him  the  com- 
muniques in  the  Petit  Parisien,  he  said  it  was  enough. 
He  also  turned  the  pages  of  a  book  he  had  recently 
begun  to  read,  La  Science  et  les  Alkmands. 


272          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

I  told  him  how  pleased  I  was  to  see  him  better. 
"  It  is  true,"  he  said,  "  to-day  I  have  no  death- 
sensation,  but  I  beg  you,  have  no  illusions  !  " 

Always  that  preoccupation  of  breaking  the  shock 
for  me.  He  made  me  bring  a  pocket-book  with  some 
money  in  it  and  a  few  envelopes  ;  in  each  of  them  he 
made  me  place  notes  of  similar  value,  then  with  his 
already  shaking  hand,  he  himself  wrote  on  each 
envelope  the  value  of  the  notes  multiplied  by  their 
number,  and  explained  that  it  was  to  help  me  to  find 
quickly  what  I  should  require  after  the  catastrophe. 

He  ate  better  at  lunch  than  he  had  done  lately ;  but 
already  at  two  o'clock  the  breathlessness  increased. 
Yet  he  did  not  look  pale  ;  he  had  preserved  his 
rosy  complexion.  As  he  inhaled  the  oxygen,  he  was 
shaken  by  a  hiccough.  He  pressed  my  hand.  "  It 
is  the  end,"  he  said,  "  the  death  rattle  ;  that  is 
how  people  die."  He  looked  at  his  watch  on  the 
small  table,  it  marked  four  o'clock. 

"  No,"  he  said,  "  it  must  have  stopped.  Four 
o'clock  struck  some  time  ago."  And  he  smiled. 
"  Is  it  not  strange  that  it  should  have  stopped  before 
I  ?  Go  and  see  what  time  it  is." 

I  ran  out  to  see  the  clock  from  the  window  of 
another  room  ;  it  was  twenty  minutes  to  five.  I  met 
some  one  in  the  passage  and  asked  him  to  go  quickly 
to  fetch  one  of  the  Institute  doctors.  Then  I  begged 
Elie  not  to  have  such  ideas,  and  tried  to  cheer  him. 

•  "  But,  my  child,  why  do  you  want  to  calm  me  ?  I 
am  quite  calm ;  I  am  only  stating  facts,"  he  said, 
adding  tender  words. 

At  that  moment  Salimbeni  came  in.  Elie  said  to 
him  :  "  Salimbeni,  you  are  a  friend  ;  tell  me,  is  it 
the  end  ?  "  And  as  he  protested,  he  added^  "  You 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         273 

remember  your  promise  ?  You  will  do  my  post- 
mortem ?  and  look  at  the  intestines  carefully,  for  I 
think  there  is  something  there  now."  MM.  Roux  and 
Martin  then  arrived.  The  feeling  of  weight  in  the 
intestines  of  which  he  complained  was  mentioned. 
He  did  not  know  that  he  had  ascitis  in  the  peritoneum. 

As  I  was  attending  to  him  I  felt  him  move  sud- 
denly, and  said,  "  I  beg  you,  do  not  make  such  sudden 
movements  ;  you  know  it  is  not  good  for  you."  He 
did  not  answer.  I  raised  my  head  ;  his  was  thrown 
back  on  the  pillows,  his  face  had  assumed  a  blue 
tinge,  the  white  of  the  eyes  alone  could  be  seen  under 
the  half -closed  lids. 

Not  a  word,  not  a  sound. 

All  was  over.1 

Then  an  abyss  of  oblivion.  .  .  . 

I  saw  him  again,  stretched  on  his  deathbed.  He 
was  white,  cold,  and  dumb.  His  face  bore  a  calm 
and  very  serious  expression.  He  looked  like  a 
martyr  who  had  at  last  entered  into  rest.  Death 
had  marked  his  face  with  no  dread  seal.  The  lids 
had  closed  of  their  own  accord,  and  he  seemed  to  be 
sleeping  after  great  lassitude ;  one  might  have 
thought  that,  with  his  usual  kindness,  he  wished  to 
spare  us  all  too  painful  an  impression.  .  .  . 

All  through  the  night  and  the  next  morning  his 
face  preserved  the  same  expression. 

In  the  afternoon  Salimbeni  performed  the  autopsy. 
Then  he  was  laid  in  his  coffin  ;  twenty-four  hours  had 
elapsed  since  the  end.  Wrapped  in  a  white  sheet, 
which  framed  his  fine  face,  he  had  the  appearance  of 
a  biblical  prophet. 

Now  his  expression  had  assumed  absolute  serenity, 

1  It  was  5.20  by  the  conventional  war  time,  4.20  in  reality. 

T 


274         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

illumined  by  gentleness  and  kindness.  He  had  a  look 
of  elevation,  grandeur,  and  beauty  which  was  really 
divine.  It  was  an  apotheosis.  His  beautiful  soul 
beamed  in  its  full  purity  ;  neither  suffering  nor  any 
earthly  preoccupation  had  any  hold  on  it.  He  gave 
an  impression  of  eternal  rest. 

It  was  his  final  image,  a  splendid  one,  the  last  .  .  . 
for  ever. 

The  bier  was  closed  and  covered  with  a  heavy 
black  pall.  On  life  also  a  blacker  and  heavier  pall 
had  fallen.  The  light  had  gone  out. 

Two  days  later,  on  the  18th  July,  he  was  carried 
to  the  cemetery  of  the  Pere  Lachaise,  to  be  cremated 
in  all  simplicity,  as  he  had  wished.  Faithful  to  his 
ideas,  he  had  wished  for  a  lay  funeral,  with  no  speeches, 
flowers,  or  invitations. 

His  bier  disappeared  into  a  large  sarcophagus  ;  on 
each  side  black  curtains  fell  to  hide  what  was  going 
on.  .  .  .  Then  one  hour  of  heavy  silence  whilst  the 
poor  body  was  being  consumed  by  the  flames.  .  .  . 

A  death  silence.  .  .  . 

And  that  was  all.  .  .  . 

The  mercurial,  vivacious  child,  good  -  hearted, 
intelligent,  and  precocious ;  the  young  man,  ardent, 
impetuous,  passionate,  a  lover  of  science  and  of  all 
that  was  exalted ;  the  mature  man,  a  bold  thinker, 
an  indefatigable  investigator,  eager,  generous,  tender, 
and  devoted ;  the  old  man,  in  everything  faith- 
ful to  himself,  but  progressing  in  serenity,  shining 
with  an  ever  softer  light,  like  a  mountain  peak  in  the 
setting  sun ;  the  martyr  at  last,  enduring  suffering 
with  patience  and  resignation,  seeing  the  approach 
of  death  without  fear,  observing  it  as  he  had  observed 
life.  . 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         275 

The  hour  of  silence  was  over ;  the  incineration 
accomplished.  Of  his  body,  little  was  left — a  handful 
of  ashes.  They  were  enclosed  within  an  urn  and 
placed  in  the  library  of  the  Pasteur  Institute. 

But  his  beautiful,  ardent  soul,  his  audacious  and 
fertile  ideas,  all  that  rich  inner  life  which  had 
developed  into  a  harmonious  and  puissant  sym- 
phony, all  that  cannot  be  dead,  cannot  disappear ! 
The  ideas,  the  influence  we  give  to  life  must  persist, 
must  live ;  they  are  the  sacred  flame  which  we  hand 
on  to  others  and  are  eternal. 


EPILOGUE 

THE  life  and  work  of  Elie  MetchnikofE  are  so  inti- 
mately bound  together  that,  in  a  biography,  it  is  im- 
possible to  separate  them.  That  is  why  the  descrip- 
tion of  his  work  necessarily  has  been  dispersed  along 
the  story  of  his  life  ;  but,  just  as,  in  order  to  judge  of  a 
work  of  art,  one  has  to  draw  back  and  contemplate 
the  whole,  we  must  also,  after  following  the  evolution 
and  successive  stages  of  E.  Metchnikoff's  scientific 
works,  take  a  full  view  of  his  work  as  a  whole. 

He  was  a  born  biologist ;  everything  connected 
with  life  interested  him.  In  his  childhood,  he  ob- 
served plants  and  animals.  At  the  age  of  fifteen,  he 
became  acquainted  with  microscopic  beings  ;  they 
aroused  in  him  such  powerful  interest  towards  the 
primitive  forms  of  life  that,  from  that  moment,  not 
only  his  future  path  was  marked  out  for  him  but  also 
his  method  of  starting  from  the  simple  to  elucidate  the 
complex.  He  was  imbued  with  Darwin's  theory 
of  evolution ;  having  begun  by  the  study  of  inferior 
animals,  he  began  to  look  for  their  connections  with 
other  groups. 

He  endeavoured  to  establish  the  continuity  and 
the  unity  of  phenomena  in  all  living  beings.  Accord- 
ing to  his  method  of  studying  first  what  was  simplest, 
he  turned  to  embryology,  for  in  the  egg  and  the 
embryo  it  is  possible  to  follow  step  by  step  the  trans- 

276 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         277 

formation  of  the  simple  to  the  complex  and  to  see  the 
origin  and  development  of  all  the  constituent  parts 
of  the  organism.  Moreover,  the  embryo  is  exempt 
from  secondary  complications,  due  to  the  multiple 
external  conditions  of  post-embryonic  life. 

Metchnikoff  was  able  to  establish,  from  embryo- 
logical  data,  that  the  development  of  lower  animals 
takes  place  according  to  the  same  plan  and  under 
the  same  laws  as  that  of  higher  animals.  In  all  of 
them,  the  segmentation  of  the  egg  is  followed  by  the 
formation  of  embryonic  layers,  of  which  each  gives 
birth  to  cells  and  to  definite  organs.  Superior  forms 
repeat,  in  their  embryonic  life,  the  evolution  cycle  of 
inferior  forms.1 

This  common  plan  in  the  embryology  of  all 
animals  established  their  genealogical  continuity  and 
strengthened  the  Darwinian  theory. 

Metchnikofi's  studies,  carried  out  on  the  various 
groups  of  animals,  contributed  towards  the  founda- 
tion of  comparative  embryology.  Owing  to  the 
comparative  method,  he  had  made  himself  familiar 
not  only  with  the  morphological  and  functional  con- 
tinuity of  divers  organisms,  but  also  with  that  of 
their  constituting  cells  ;  a  comparison  between  the 
latter  and  unicellular  beings  was  inevitable.  That  is 
why,  having  ascertained  that  the  mobile  cells  of  the 
lower  Metazoa  absorbed  foreign  bodies  by  inclusion, 
he  naturally  concluded  that  that  phenomenon  was 
similar  to  digestion  in  unicellular  beings. 

Having  established  the  fact  of  intracellular  diges- 
tion in  lower  animals,  he  extended  it  to  certain  cells 

1  Thus  the  parenchymella,  phagocytdla,  and  gastrula  stages  correspond 
in  the  embryo  with  the  adult  form  of  certain  very  primitive  Metazoa  and 
even  to  a  colony  of  unicellular  animals. 


278         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

of  the  higher  animals ;  thus  his  phagocyte  theory 
was  born. 

Seeing  that  unicellular  beings,  like  the  mobile  cells 
of  Metazoa,  englobe,  not  only  food,  but  foreign 
bodies,  he  asked  himself  whether  this  was  not  at 
the  same  time  a  defensive  action.  Such  a  possi- 
bility brought  no  surprise  to  a  zoologist,  accustomed 
to  see  that,  in  the  struggle  for  existence,  animals 
often  devoured  their  enemies. 

All  the  materials  for  the  building  up  of  the  phago- 
cyte theory  were  therefore  ready  in  MetchnikofFs 
mind  when  he  asked  himself,  as  by  an  intuition, 
whether  the  white  globules  of  our  blood,  globules 
so  similar  to  amoebae,  do  not  play  the  part  of  a 
defensive  army  in  our  organism  when  they  envelope 
in  accumulated  masses  intrusive  bodies  injurious  to 
the  organism. 

The  thought  was  but  the  result  of  a  preparatory 
work  already  accomplished  ;  it  was  the  butterfly 
escaping  out  of  the  chrysalis. 

MetchnikofE  had  recourse  to  his  method  of  simpli- 
fication in  order  to  solve  the  question. 

The  organism  of  the  higher  animals  being  ex- 
tremely complicated,  he  went  down  as  far  as  the 
transparent  larva  of  the  starfish  (bipinnaria)  in  order 
to  watch  with  his  own  eyes  the  phenomena  which 
take  place  within  it.  He  introduced  a  rose-thorn 
into  the  transparent  body  of  the  larva,  and  noted 
the  next  day  that  the  mobile  cells  in  the  latter  had 
crowded  towards  the  splinter,  like  an  army  rushing 
to  meet  a  foe. 

The  analogy  of  this  phenomenon  with  inflamma- 
tion and  the  formation  of  an  abscess  was  striking. 
Metchnikoff  said  to  himself  that  since  most  diseases 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         279 

in  the  higher  animals  are  accompanied  by  inflam- 
mation and  provoked  by  microbes,  it  was  chiefly 
against  these  microbes  that  our  defensive  cells  had 
to  struggle.  He  named  the  defensive  cells  phagocytes. 

He  confirmed  his  hypothesis  by  another  observa- 
tion, equally  simple.  In  a  little  transparent  crusta- 
cean (Daphnia)  infected  by  a  small  parasitic  fungus, 
(Monospora  bicuspidata),  he  was  easily  able  to 
observe  the  struggle  between  the  animal's  mobile  cells 
and  its  parasites. 

These  two  simple  observations  served  as  founda- 
tion and  supports  to  the  bridge  by  which  Metchnikoff 
connected  normal  biology  with  pathological  biology. 
Having  entered  the  domain  of  the  latter,  he  studied 
various  microbian  diseases,  and  asked  himself  why 
the  organism  was  sometimes  liable  and  sometimes 
refractory.  In  order  to  elucidate  this  question,  he 
turned  again  to  lower  animals,  in  which  he  could  easily 
observe  the  most  intimate  phenomena,  simplified. 

He  ascertained  that  liability  in  an  animal  corre- 
sponded with  the  fact  that  microbes  introduced  into 
the  organism  remained  free  and  invaded  it,  whilst 
immunity  coincided  with  the  inclusion  and  digestion 
of  the  microbes  by  phagocytes. 

He  also  found  that,  in  artificial  immunity,  the 
phagocytes  are  accustomed  gradually,  by  preventive 
inoculations,  to  digest  microbes  and  their  toxins. 

Thus  he  established  the  fact  that  phagocytosis 
and  inflammation  are  curative  means  employed  by 
the  organism. 

All  his  ulterior  researches,  his  studies  on  the 
various  categories  of  phagocytes  and  their  properties, 
on  their  digestive  liquids,  on  the  formation  of  anti- 
toxins, on  the  different  properties  acquired  by  the 


280         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

blood,  etc.,  were  but  the  natural  development  of 
those  premises. 

He  had  proved  that  the  part  played  by  the  phago- 
cytes consists,  not  only  in  the  struggle  against  microbes 
and  their  poisons,  but  also  in  the  destruction  of  all 
the  mortified  or  enfeebled  cells  of  the  organism,  and 
that  atrophies  are  nothing  more  than  the  absorption 
of  cellular  elements  by  the  phagocytes. 

He  found  that  senile  atrophies  have  the  same 
cause,  and  asked  why  the  cells  of  old  people's 
organisms  should  become  enfeebled. 

He  demonstrated  that  the  principal  cause  is  the 
chronic  poisoning  of  the  cells  by  toxins  manufactured 
by  microbes  in  the  intestine.  Premature  senility  was 
the  result — a  phenomenon  as  pathological  as  any 
disease. 

The  source  of  the  evil,  therefore,  resides  in  the 
intestinal  flora.  Accordingly  he  started  to  study  the 
latter,  as  also  senility,  in  order  to  find  means  of 
struggling  against  both. 

His  researches  enabled  him  to  indicate  a  series  of 
means,  based,  on  the  one  hand,  on  the  struggle  against 
microbes,  and,  on  the  other,  on  the  defence  of  the 
noble  cells  against  destructive  ones.1 

The  study  of  old  age  led  him  to  that  of  syphilis, 
a  disease  which  provokes  an  arterio-sclerosis  which  is 
similar  to  that  of  old  people  ;  the  study  of  the  normal 
intestinal  flora  was  followed  by  that  of  intestinal 
diseases,  such  as  typhoid  fever  and  infantile  cholera. 

Finally,  he  progressed  towards  the  last  pheno- 
menon, the  most  mysterious  in  nature,  Death. 

1  Replacement  of  the  wild  and  noxious  flora  of  the  intestines  by 
antagonistic  cultivated  microbes ;  strengthening  and  vaccinating  of  noble 
cells. 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         281 

Researches  on  the  silk-worm  moth — a  rare  ex- 
ample of  an  animal  the  life  of  which  ends  in  natural 
death — allowed  him  to  conclude  that  the  latter  is 
due  to  an  auto-intoxication  of  the  organism. 

But  he  only  just  raised  the  veil  of  the  great 
mystery  ;  it  was  his  last  work.  .  .  . 

Metchnikofl's  philosophical  evolution  ran  on 
parallel  lines  with  his  scientific  researches. 

When  studying  the  laws  and  the  unity  of  vital 
phenomena  he  found  that  their  harmony  was  occa- 
sionally broken  by  the  collision  of  internal  conditions 
with  the  environment  and  that  regrettable  conse- 
quences ensued.  He  saw  an  example  of  that  in  human 
nature,  full  of  disharmonies  due  to  its  animal  origin. 

These  considerations  caused  the  pessimism  of  his 
youth.  But  his  energetic,  pugnacious  temperament 
could  not  remain  content  with  a  passive  acceptance 
of  facts. 

He  started  to  study  the  lack  of  harmony  in  human 
nature  and  its  causes,  and  sought  for  means  to  combat 
these  causes.  Gradually  he  reached  the  conclusion 
that  the  greatest  human  disharmonies  are  provoked 
by  the  rupture  of  the  normal  cycle  of  our  life,  by  the 
precocity  of  senility  and  of  death,  chiefly  arising  from  a 
chronic  poisoning  by  the  toxins  of  intestinal  microbes. 

But  having  acquired  the  conviction  that  it  is 
possible  to  struggle  against  that  intoxication,  he  con- 
cluded that  science,  which  has  already  done  so  much 
to  fight  diseases,  would  also  find  means  of  struggling 
against  premature  old  age  and  'precocious  death,  thus 
leading  us  to  the  normal  vital  cycle,  orthobiosis. 

Then  disharmony,  transformed  into  harmony,  will 
cause  the  greatest  of  ills  to  disappear. 


282         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METOHNIKOFF 

Faith  in  the  power  of  Science  and  in  the  possibility 
of  modifying  human  nature  itself  through  Science 
was  the  foundation  of  the  optimistic  philosophy  of  his 
maturity.  Thoughts  full  of  strength  and  hope  shine 
like  leading  stars  all  along  his  philosophical  works. 

"  Alone,  Kational  Science  is  capable  of  showing 
humanity  the  true  path." 

"  The  real  goal  of  human  existence  consists  in  an 
active  life  in  conformity  with  individual  capacity  ; 
in  a  life  prolonged  until  the  appearance  of  the  death- 
instinct,  and  until  Man,  satisfied  with  the  duration  of 
his  existence,  feels  the  desire  for  annihilation." 

"  Man  is  capable  of  great  works ;  that  is  why  it 
is  desirable  that  he  should  modify  human  nature  and 
transform  its  disharmonies  into  harmonies." 

"If  an  ideal  capable  of  uniting  men  in  a  sort  of 
religion  is  possible,  it  can  only  be  founded  on  scientific 
principles.  And,  if  it  is  true,  as  is  often  affirmed, 
that  man  cannot  live  without  faith,  it  must  be  faith 
in  the  power  of  Science." 

Thus  Elie  Metchnikofi  had  begun  by  the  study  of 
nascent  life  in  inferior  beings ;  by  a  logical  and  con- 
tinuous chain,  he  had  followed  the  whole  cycle  of 
development  of  living  beings  in  their  continuity  and 
their  whole. 

From  the  initial  question  of  intracellular  digestion 
he  had  reached  the  most  exalted  problems  which  can 
occupy  our  minds,  the  harmonising  of  human  dis- 
cords through  knowledge  and  will. 

Such  is  the  harmonious  edifice  which  he  has 
built. 

No  vital  question  was  indifferent  to  him.  He 
tackled  the  most  difficult  and  most  mysterious  among 
them  with  courage,  moved  by  an  invincible  impulse 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF         283 

towards  Truth  and  sustained  by  enthusiasm  and 
faith  in  the  power  of  Science. 

The  beauty  of  a  work  of  art  consists  in  the  harmony 
and  unity  of  a  realised  conception. 

Thus  a  Gothic  cathedral,  by  its  graceful  and  har- 
monious lines,  expresses  an  impulse  towards  higher 
spheres;  it  leans  solidly  on  the  earth  only  in  order 
to  soar  better  towards  the  heavens. 

Such  is  also  the  character  of  Elie  Metchnikofi's  life- 
work. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL   APPENDIX 


WORKS  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

1865.  "  Beitrage  zur  Kenntniss  der  Chaetopoden,"  Zeitschrift  fiir  wissen- 

schaftliche  Zoologie,  xv.  3,  p.  328. 
"  Uber  einige  wenig  bekannte  Thierformen,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 

xv.  4,  p.  450. 
"  Uber  Geodesmus  bilineatus  Nob.  (Fasciola  terrestris),  eine  euro- 

paische  Landplanarie,  Melanges  biologiques  "  (Bull,  de  1' Academic 

des  Sciences  de  Saint-Petersbourg,  vol.  v.). 

1866.  "  Untersuchungen  iiber  die  Embryologie  der  Hemipteren  (vorlaufige 

Mitteilung),"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xvi.  1,  p.  128. 
"  Zur  Entwicklungsgeschichte  von  Myzostomum,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen. 

Zool.  xvi.  1,  p.  326. 
"  Apsilus  lentiformis,  ein  Raderthier,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xvi.  3, 

p.  1. 
"  Embryologischen  Studien  an  Insecten,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xvi. 

Entgegnung  auf  die  Erwiederung  des  Her.  Prof.  Leuckart  in 

Giessen,  in  Betreff  der  Frage  iiber  die  Nematodenentwicklung 

(Gottingen,  Verlag  von  Adalbert  Rente). 

1867.  "  Beitrage  zur  Naturgeschichte  der  Wiirme,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 

xvii.  4,  p.  539. 

"Embryology  of  the  Sepiola"  (in  Russian),  Archives  des  Sciences 
physiques  et  naturelles,  Geneve,  vol.  21. 

1868.  "  Beitrage  zur  Kenntniss  der  Entwicklungsgeschichte  der  Chae- 

topoden "  (in  collaboration  with  Ed.  Claparede),  Zeit.  f.  wissen. 
Zool.  xviii. 

1869.  "Embryology  of  Nebalia"  (in  Russian),  Melanges  biologiques  de 

l'Acad6mie  de  Saint-P6tersbourg,  vi.  p.  730. 
"Untersuchungen    fiber    die     Metamorphose     einiger     Seethiere, 

Tornaria,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xx.  p.  131. 
"Uber  ein  Larvenstadium  von  Euphausia,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 

xix.  4,  p.  179. 
"  Uber   die    Entwicklung   der   Echinodermen   und    Nemertinen," 

Memoires  de  1'Acad.  de  Saint-P6tersbourg,  xiv.  8,  p.  33. 

1870.  "  Bemerkungen    iiber    Echinodermen,"    Bulletins    de    1'Acad.    de 

Saint-Petersbourg,  xiv.  p.  51. 
"  Embryologie  des  Scorpions,"  Zeitschr.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xxi. 

1871.  "Uber  die  Metamorphose  einiger  Seethiere,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 

xxi.  2,  p.  235. 


286         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

"  Entwioklungsgeschichte  des  Chelifers,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xxi. 

p.  513. 

"  tlber  den  Naupliuszustand  von  Euphausia,"  ibid.  Bd.  xix. 
1872.     "  Zur   Entwioklungsgeschichte   dor  einfachen   Ascidien,"   Zeit.    f. 

wissen.  Zool.  xxii.  3,  p.  339. 
"  Vorlaufige  Mitteilung  iiber  die  Embryologie  der  Polydesmiden," 

Melanges  biologiques  des  Bullet,  de  1'Academie  des  Sciences 

de  Saint-Petersbourg,  vol.  viii. 
"  Zur  Entwicklungsgeschichte  der  Kalkschwamme,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen. 

Zool.  xxiv.  p.  1. 
"  Studien  iiber  die  Entwicklung  der  Medusen  und  Siphonophoren," 

Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xxiv.  p.  15. 
"  Embryologie  der  doppelfiissigen   Myriapoden,"   Zeit.  f.  wissen. 

Zool.  xxiv.  p.  253. 
1874.     "  Embryologisches   iiber   Geophilus,"   Zeit.   f.   wissen.  Zool.  xxv. 

p.  313. 
1876.     "Beitrage   zur  Morphologic  der  Spongien,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 

xxvii.  p.  275. 

1878.  "  Spongiologische    Studien,"     Zeit.    f.    wissen.    Zool.     xxxii.     p. 

349. 

1879.  "  Spongiologische  Studien,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xxxii.  p.  374. 

1880.  "  t)ber  die  intracellulare  Verdauung  bei  Coelenteraten,"  Zoologischer 

Anzeiger,  No.  56,  p.  261. 
"  Untersnchungen    iiber    Orthonectiden,"    Zeit.    f.    wissen.    Zool. 

xxxv.  p.  282. 
"  Uber  die  systematische  Stellung  von  Balanoglossus,"  Zoologischer 

Anzeiger,  pp.  139,  153. 

1881.  "  Zur  Lehre  iiber  die  intracellulare  Verdauung  niederer  Tiere," 

Zoologischer  Anzeiger,  p.  310. 
Vergleichend-embryologische  Studien  : 

1.  Entodermbildung  bei  Geryoniden. 

2.  "  ftber  einige  Studien  der  Cunina,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xxxvi. 

p.  433. 

1882.  3.  "t)ber  die  Gastrula  einiger  Metazoen,"   Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 

xxxvii.  p.  286. 

"  Die  Embryologie  von  Planaria  polychroa,"  Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool. 
xxxviii.  3,  p.  331. 

1883.  "  Untersuchungen  iiber  die  intracellulare  Verdauung  bei  wirbellosen 

Tieren,"   Arbeiten   d.    zool.    Instituts   zu  Wien,   v.   2,  p.    14 
(Quarterly  Journal  of  Micr.  Science,  vol.  93). 

"  Untersuchung  iiber  die  mesodermalen  Phagocyten  einiger  Wirbel- 
tiere,"  Biologisch.  Centralblatt,  No.  18,  p.  560,  Bd.  iii. 

1884.  "  Embryologische  Mitteilungen  iiber  Echinodermen,"  Zoologischer 

Anzeiger,  vii.  Nos.  158,  159. 
"  t)ber  eine  Sprosspilzkrankheit  der  Daphnien  ;   Beitrag  zur  Lehre 

iiber   den   Kampf   der  Phagocyten  gegen  Krankheitserreger," 

Virchow's  Archiv,  vol.  96,  p.  177. 
"  t)ber    die    Beziehung    der    Phagocyten    zu    Milzbrandbacillen," 

Virchow's  Archiv,  vol.  97,  p.  502. 
"  Uber  die  pathologische  Bedeutung  der  intracellularen  Verdauung," 

Fortschritte  der  Medizin,  1884,  p.  558,  No.  17. 

1885.  Vergleichend-embryologische  Studien  : 

4.  "  tJber  die  Gastrulation  und  Mesodermbildung  der  Ctenophoren, 
648. 


BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  APPENDIX        287 

5.  "  tJber  die  Bildung  der  Wanderzellen  bei  Asterien  und  Echiniden," 
Zeit.  f.  wissen.  Zool.  xlii.  p.  656. 

1886.  "  Medusologiache  Mittheilungen,"   Arbeiten  d.  zool.   Institute  zu 

Wien,  vi.  2,  p.  1. 

Embryologische  Studien  an  Medusen,  ein  Beitrag  zur  Genealogie 
der  Primitivorgane,  Wien,  1886. 

1887.  "  Sur  1' attenuation  des  bacteridies  charbonneuses  dans  le  sang  des 

moutons  refractaires,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  i.  p.  42, 

No.  1. 
"  tJber  den  Kampf  der  Zellen  gegen  Erysipelkokken,  ein  Beitrag 

zur  Phagocytenlehre,"  Virchow's  Archiv,  vol.  107,  p.  209. 
"  t)ber    den    Phagocytenkampf    bei    Ruckfalltyphus,"    Virchow's 

Archiv,  vol.  109,  p.  176. 
"Sur   la   lutte    des    cellules  de  1'organisme  centre  1'invasion  des 

microbes,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  i.  p.  321,  No.  7. 
"  Kritische  Bemerkungen  iiber  den  Aufsatz  des  Hernn.  Christmas- 

Direkinck  -  Holmfeld,    I.    V.,"    Fortschritte    der  Medizin,   17, 

p.  541. 

1888.  "  tJber  die  phagocytare  Rolle  der  Tuberkelriesenzellen,"  Virchow's 

Archiv,  vol.  113,  p.  63. 
"  Pasteuria  Ramosa,  un  representant  des  bact^ries  a  division  longi- 

..tudinale,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  p.  165,  t.  ii.  No.  4. 
"  fiber  das  Verhalten  der  Milzbrandbakterien  im   Organismus," 

Virchow's  Archiv,  vol.  114,  p.  465. 
"Reponse   a  la   critique   de   M.    Weigert   au   sujet   des   cellules 

geantes  de  la  tuberculose,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  ii. 

p.  604. 

1889.  "  Recherches  sur  la  digestion  intracellulaire,"  Annales  de  1'Institut 

Pasteur,  iii.  p.  25,  No.  1. 
"  Contribution  a  1'etude  du  pleomorphisme  des  bacteries,"  Annales 

de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  iii.  p.  61,  No.  2. 
"Note  sur  le  pleomorphisme,  etc.,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur, 

iii.  p.  265,  No.  5. 
Studies  on  Immunity : 
1.  "  Immunite  des  lapins  contre  le  bacille  du  rouget  des  pores," 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  iii.  p.  289,  No.  6. 

1890.  2.  "  Le  Charbon  des  pigeons,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  iv. 

p.  65,  No.  2. 

3.  "  Le  Charbon  des  rats  blancs,"  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur, 
iv.  p.  193,  No.  4. 

1891.  4.  "L'Immunite'  des  cobayes  vaccines  contre  le  Vibrio  Metchnikowi," 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  v.  p.  465,  No.  8. 

"  Sur  la  propriete  bactericide  du  sang  de  rat "  (in  collaboration  with 
Dr.  Roux),  No.  8. 

"  Recherches  sur  1'accoutumance  aux  produits  microbiens "  (in 
collaboration  with  Dr.  Roudenko),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pas- 
teur, v.  p.  567,  No.  9. 

"  Beitrage  zur  vergleichenden  Pathologie  der  Entzxindung,"  Virchow 
Festschrift,  vol.  11. 

1892.  "La   Phagooytose  musculaire "  (in  collaboration   with   Dr.   Sou- 

dakevitch),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  vi.  p.  1. 
Le9ons  sur  la  pathologic  compare*  de  rinflammation.     Paris,  1892. 
"  On  Aqueous  Humour,  Micro-organisms  and  Immunity,"  Journal 

of  Pathology,  i. 


288         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Studies  on  Immunity  : 

5.  "  Immunite  des  lapins  vaccines  centre  le  microbe  du  Hogcholera," 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  vi.  p.  189,  No.  5. 
"  Atrophie  des  muscles  pendant  la  transformation  des  batraciens," 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  vi.  No.  1. 
"  Note  au  sujet  du  memoire  de  M.  Soudakevitch  (Parasitisme  in- 

tracellulaire  des  neoplasmes  cancereux),"  No.  3. 
"  tfber  Muskelphagocytose,"  Centralblatt  fiir  Bakteriologie,  1892. 
"  La  Lutte  pour  1'existence  entre  les  diverses  parties  de  1'organisme," 

Revue  scientifique,  10  sept.  1892,  No.  11. 

1893.  "  Recherches  sur  le  cholera  et  les  vibrions,  ler  memoire  "  (Sur  la 

propriete  preventive  du  sang  humain  vis-a-vis  du  vibrion  de 

Koch),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  vii.  p.  403,  No.  5. 
2.  "  Memoire,"  idem   (Sur  la  propriete  pathogene  des  vibrions), 

tome  vii.  p.  562,  No.  7. 
Comparative  Pathology  of  Inflammation.     Lectures  at  the  Pasteur 

Institute.     Paul:    London,  1893.      8vo.      (The  name   of    the 

translator  is  not  stated. ) 

1894.  3.  "Memoire,"  idem   (Sur    la   vaccination  artificielle   du   vibrion 

cholerique),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  viii.  p.  257,  No.  5. 
4.  "  Memoire,"  idem  (Sur  1'immunite  et  la  receptivite  vis-a-vis  du 

cholera  intestinal),  tome  viii.  p.  529,  No.  8. 
"  L'etat  actuel  de  la  question  de  I'immunite  "  (Rapport  du  Congres 

international  de  Budapest),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  viii. 

p.  706,  No.  10. 

1895.  Studies  on  Immunity  : 

6.  ' '  Sur  la  destruction  extracellulaire  des  bact6ries  dans  rorganisme," 

Annales  de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  ix.  p.  433,  No.  6. 

1896.  "  Toxine  et  antitoxine  choleriques  "  (in  collaboration  with  Drs.  Roux 

and  Salimbeni),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  x.  p.  25,  No.  5. 
"  Quelques  remarques  a  propos  de  1'article  de  Gabritchevsky  sur  la 

fievre  recurrente,"  Annales  de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  x.  No.  11 
Recherches  sur  V  influence  de  Vorganisme  sur  les  toxines : 

1897.  1st  Memoir.     "  Recherches  sur  1'influence  de  1'organisme  sur  les 

toxines,"  Annales  de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  xi.  p.  801. 

"Reponse  a  M.  Gabritchevsky,"  Annales  de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur, 
xi.  No.  3. 

"  Immunitat,"  Weyl's  Handbuch  der  Hygiene.     lena,  1897. 

"  Recherches  sur  1'influence  de  1'organisme  sur  les  toxines  "  (Com- 
munication faite  au  congres  de  Moscou  en  aout  1897),  Annales 
de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  xi.  No.  10. 

1898.  2nd   Memoir.       "Influence   du   systeme    nerveux    sur    la   toxine 

tetanique,"  Annales  de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  xii.  No.  2,  p.  81. 
3rd  Memoir.      "  Toxine    tetanique    et    leucocytes,"    Annales    de 
1'Institut  Pasteur,  xii.  No.  4,  p.  263. 

1899.  "Resorption   des   cellules,"   Annales   de   1'Institut   Pasteur,    xiii. 

No.  10,  p.  737. 

1900.  Researches  on  the  Influence  of  the  Organism  on  Toxins  : 

4eme  memoire.      "  Sur   la   spermotoxine   et   I'antispermotoxine," 

Annales  de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  xiv.  p.  5. 
"Sur  les  cytotoxines,"  .Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xiv.  No.  6. 

p.  369. 
"  Recherches  sur  1'action  de  1'hemotoxine  sur  1'homme,"  Annales 

de  I'lnstitut  Pasteur,  xiv.  No.  6,  p.  402. 


BIBLIOGBAPHICAL  APPENDIX         289 

1901.  Biological  Studies  on  Old  Age  : 

1st  Memoir.     "  Sur   le   blanchiment   des  cheveux   et   des  poils," 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xv.  No.  12,  p.  865. 
L'Immunite  dans  les  maladies  infectieuses.     Paris,  1901. 

1902.  Biological  Studies  on  Old  Age.     "  Recherches  sur  la  vieillesse  des 

perroquets  "  (in  collaboration  with  Drs.  Mesnil  and  Weinberg), 
Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xvi.  No.  12. 

The  Nature  of  Man.  Studies  in  optimistic  philosophy.  The  English 
translation  by  P.  Chalmers  Mitchell.  Heinemann :  London ; 
Putnams  :  New  York,  1903.  8vo. 

1903.  Studies  on  Human  Nature  :  Paris,  1903. 

Etudes  experimentales  sur  la  syphilis  (in  collaboration  with   Dr. 

Roux) : 
1st  Memoir.     Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xvii.  No.  12,  p.  809. 

1904.  2nd  Memoir,     "Eludes  experimentales  sur  la  syphilis"   (in  col- 

laboration with  Dr.  Roux),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xviii. 
No.  1,  p.  1. 
3rd  Memoir.     Id.  No.  11. 

1905.  4th  Memoir.     Id.     Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xix.  No.  11. 
Immunity  in  Infective  Diseases.     Translated  from  the  French  by 

F.  G.  Binnie.  University  Press  :  Cambridge  ;  The  Macmillan 
Co.  :  New  York,  1905.  8vo. 

1906.  5th  Memoir.     Id.,  Annales  de  PInstitut  Pasteur,  xx.  No.  10. 

The  New  Hygiene  :  three  lectures  on  the  prevention  of  infectious 
diseases.  Translated  and  a  preface  written  by  E.  Ray  Lankester. 
Heinemann  :  London,  1906.  8vo. 

[Another  edition.]    Chicago  Medical  Book  Co.  :  Chicago,  1906.    8vo. 

1907.  [Another  edition.]     W.  T.  Keener  &  Co.  :   Chicago,  1907.     8vo. 
"Sur  la  prophylaxie  de  la  syphilis"  (Paper  read  at  the  Xllth 

International  Congress  in  Berlin),  Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur, 
xxi.  No.  10. 

The  Prolongation  of  Life:  optimistic  studies.  The  English  trans- 
lation edited  by  P.  Chalmers  Mitchell.  Heinemann:  London, 
1907.  8vo. 

Essais  optimistes. 

1908.  "Eludes    sur    la    flore    intestinale,"    "Putrefaction    intestinale," 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xxii.  No.  12. 

1909.  Idem.     "  Roussettes    et    microbes"  (in    collaboration   with  MM. 

Weinberg,  Pozersky,  Distaso,  Berthelot),  Annales  de  1'Institut 
Pasteur,  xxiii.  No.  12. 

Notes  on  Sour  Milk  and  other  Methods  of  administering  Selected 
Lactic  Germs  in  Intestinal  Bacterio-therapy.  J.  Bale,  Sons  & 
Co.  :  London,  1909.  8vo. 

1910.  Idem.     "  Poisons  intestinaux  et  scleroses,"  Annales  de  1'Institut 

Pasteur,  xxiv.  No.  10. 

The  Prolongation  of  Life.  New  and  revised  edition.  Heinemann  : 
London  ;  Putnams  :  New  York,  1910.  8vo. 

1911.  "  Sur  la  fievre  typholde  experimentale  "  (Metchnikoff  et  Besredka), 

Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur,  xxv.  No.  3. 
Annales  de  1'Institut  Pasteur  : 
Tome  xxv.  No.  6.     Quelques  remarques  sur  la  vaccination  a  propos 

du  memoire  de  M.  Choukevitch  sur  le  cholera. 
Tome  xxv.  No.  6.     Reponse  de  MM.  Metchnikoff  et  Besredka  a 

M.  le  Dr.  Vincent  (remarques  sur  la  vaccination  antityphique). 

U 


290          LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 

Tome  xxv.  No.  11.     El.  Metchnikoff,  E.  Burnet  et  L.  Tarassevitch, 
"  Recherches  sur  1'epidemiologie  de  la  tuberculose  dans  les  steppes 

Kalmouks." 
Tome  xxv.  No.  12.     El.  Metchnikoff  et  A.  Besredka,  "  Des  vaccina 

tions  antityphiques  (2nd  Memoir)." 

1912.  Tome  xxvi.  No.   11.      El.  Metchnikoff  et  Bug.   Wollman,  "Sur 

quelquesessaisde  desintoxication  intestinale,"  "  BactSriotherapie 
intestinale." 

The  Warfare  against  Tuberculosis— being  the  Priestley  Lecture 
of  the  National  Health  Society  for  the  year  1912.  Published 
in  Bedrock,  January  1913.  Constable  :  London. 

1913.  Etudes  sur  la  flore  intestinale. 

Tome  xxvii.  No.  8.  "  Des  vaccinations  antityphiques  "  (El.  Metchni- 
koff et  A.  Besredka). 

Tome  xxvii.  No.  11.  "  Toxicite  des  sulfoconjugues  de  la  serie 
aromatique." 

1914.  Tome  xxviii.  No.  2.  "  Eludes  sur  la  flore  intestinale  "(4emememoire). 
"  Les  diarrhees  des  nourrissons." 

1915.  Tome  xxix.  No.  8.     "  Causerie  de  El.  Metchnikoff  a  1'occasion  de 

son  jubile." 

Tome  xxix.  No.  10.     "  La  Mort  du  papillon  du  murier." 
"  Founders  of  Modern  Medicine :  Pasteur,  Lister,  Koch  "  in  Russian 

(a  French  translation  to  appear  shortly). 

1916-16.     "  Introduction  a  '  Eludes  sur  la  fonction  sexuelle  '  "  (posthume, 
dans  Le  Mercure  de  France,  1917). 

1916.  The    Nature    of    Man.     Popular   edition.     Heinemann :     London, 

1916.     8vo. 

Note.— Sources  consulted  :  British  Museum  Catalogue  ;  English  Catalogue  ; 
American  Catalogue. 


INDEX 


Accelomata,  development  of,  73 

Albaran,  Dr.,  231 

Alexander  L,  Tsar  of  Russia,  26 

Alexander  II.,  28  ;  assassination  of, 
101,  104,  218 

Alexis  Michailovitch,  Tsar,  sends 
Spatar  on  mission  to  China,  24  ; 
death  of,  25 

Alhambra,  the,  124 

Amour  (Amur)  river,  Spatar's  ex- 
ploration of,  24 

Anisoplia  austriaca,  experiments  on, 
111 

Annales  de  Vlnstitut  Pasteur,  1915, 
249-50  ». 

Anthrax  vaccine  experiment,  un- 
fortunate result  of,  133-4 

Anthropoid  apes,  Metchnikofl's  de- 
sire to  experiment  with,  140,  189  ; 
syphilis  experiments  with,  190, 
191  ;  infantile  cholera  experi- 
ments with,  207,  220 ;  typhoid 
fever  experiments  with,  207 

Antitoxins,  Metchnikoff's  experi- 
ments with,  162 

Arbeiten  des  zool.  Inst.  zu  Wien,  pub- 
lication of  Metchnikoff's  "  Unter- 
suchung  iiber  die  intracellulare 
Verdauung  bei  wirbellosen  Tier- 
en,"  119  n. 

Arterio-sclerosis,  189,  206 

Ascidia,  Metchnikoff's  difference 
with  Kovalevsky  re,  62,  73 

Asiatic  cholera,  220 

Astrakhan  steppes,  84,  85 

Austria,  declaration  of  war  on  Serbia, 
1914,  240 

Baer,  Prof.,  and  Baer  Prize,  58 
Bakounine,  52,  56 
Bardach,  Dr.,  127,  133 
Bassarab,  Constantino,  24 
Baumgarten,  Prof.,  hostile  criticism 

of  phagocyte  theory,    126,    129  ; 

criticism  refuted,  148 


Behring,  theory  of  immunity,  148  ; 

discovery  of  antitoxins,  149,  150 
Beketoff,  Prof.,  40,  58 
Bell,  the,  29 

Berlin  Congress,  1890,  148-9 
Berthelot,  M.,  pupil  and  collaborator 

of  Metchnikoff,  197,  221 
Besredka,    Dr.,    researches,    161-2, 

207-8 

Birsch,  169  n. 
Bobrinsky,  Count,  111,  112 
Bogomoloff,  29 
Bombyx  mori  (moth  of  the  silk-worm), 

Metchnikoff's    experiments    with, 

238-9,  251 
Bordet,  M.  I.,  important  researches 

and  experiments,  165 
Borrel,  M.,  162 

Brockhaus    and    Effrone,    Encyclo- 
paedia quoted,  25-6 
Brone,    Classes   and   Orders   of  the 

Animal  Kingdom,  31 
Biichner,  169, 265 ;  paper  on  humoral 

theory,  150 

Buckle,  History  of  Civilisation,  29 
Buda-Pest  Congress  (International, 

1894),  159 
Bulletin   of  the   Moscow   Society   of 

Naturalists,  33 
Bunsen,  48 
Burnet,  M.,  211 

Caillaux  affair,  240 

Cantemir,  Prince,  26 

Casso,  Minister  of  Public  Instruction, 

219 
Cephalopoda,    Metchnikoff's    study 

of,  56,  57 
Chamberland,  265 
Chauveau,  169  and  n. 
Cholera  outbreak  in  France,   1892, 

154 ;     Metchnikoff's  experiments 

with   cholera   vibrio,    154-7,    158 

seq. 
Choukevitch,  Dr.,  212 


291 


U2 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 


Cienkovsky,  friendship  for  and 
interest  in  Metchnikoff,  59,  60, 
73 ;  resigns  from  Odessa  Uni- 
versity, 75  ;  bacillus,  210 

Clauss,  Prof.,  48,  119 

Coelentera  and  intracellular  diges- 
tion, 107,  110, 116 

Ccelomata,  development  of,  73 

Cohendy,  M.,  research  work  of, 
196 

Cohn,  association  with  and  interest 
in  Metchnikoff,  43,  45 

"  Conception  of  Nature  and  of 
Medical  Science,  A,"  Metchnikoff's 
Stuttgart  Lecture,  1909,  209,  224 

Crimea,  and  Black  Sea  fauna,  59 

Ctenophora,  73 

"  Curative  Forces  of  the  Organism, 
The,"  Metchnikoff  Lecture  on, 
in  Berlin,  1908,  208,  223 

Curded  milk,  manufacture,  Metchni- 
koff's connection  with,  226-7 

Daphnise,    experiments    with,    121, 

279 

Darre,  Dr.,  256,  266,  271 
Darwin,  The  Origin  of  Species,  41  ; 

theories,  276,  277 
Diabetes,  246 

Dubois-Reymond,  journal  of,  48 
Duclaux,  M.,  137,  265 
Duniasha  (AvdotiaMaximovna),4, 10 

Eberth's  bacillus,  207-8 

Echinodermata,  Metchnikoff's  re- 
searches, etc.,  61,  62,  70;  meta- 
morphoses of,  72,  73;  and  intra- 
cellular digestion,  107,  110,  116; 
observations  on  larvae  transforma- 
tion, 119 

Education  from  an  Anthropological 
Point  of  View,  Metchnikoff's  paper 
on,  63,  74 

Ehrlich,  Prof.,  199,  265 

Embryology,  comparative,  Metchni- 
koff's studies  in,  50-51, 56, 57, 107, 
277 

Emmerich,  265 ;  attack  on  phagocyte 
theory,  131  ;  attacks  refuted,  148 

Engelmann,  45 

Ephemeridse,  Metchnikoff's  study  of, 
105,  106,  193,  237 

Escherich,  265 

Essais  optimistes,  191-2,  209 

Etudes  sur  la  nature  humaine,  185, 
191,  209  ;  quoted,  188 

Evolution,  Metchnikoff's  researches 
in,  50-51 


Fabricia,  Metchnikoff's  researches 
on,  43 

Fedorovitch,  Mile.  Ludmilla,  after- 
wards Madame  Elie  Metchnikoff, 
63  ;  engagement  to  Metchnikoff, 
65-9 ;  marriage  to  Metchnikoff, 
69 ;  illness  of,  69-70 ;  a  clever 
draughtswoman,  71 ;  temporary 
recovery  of,  73  ;  relapse,  74,  75, 
78;  death,  79 

Fedorovitch,  Mile.,  71,  74,  78,  80; 
account  of  interview  with  Metchni- 
koff, 83 

"  Flora  of  the  Human  Body," 
Wilde  Lecture,  1901,  182 

Flore  du  corps  humain,  La,  224 

"  Forces  curatives  de  1'organisme," 
quoted,  120-21 

Forty  Years'  Search  for  a  Rational 
Conception  of  Life,  223 

Founders  of  Modern  Medicine,  The, 
extract  from  preface  to,  247-8 

Fraenkel,  Carl,  265 

Gamaleia,  Dr.,  127,  133 

Garibaldi  Movement,  the,  47 

Gamier,  M.,  21,  22 

Gastrcea,  Haeckel's  theory  of  the,  108 

"  Gastrotricha,"  Metchnikoff's  es- 
tablishment of,  42 

Geneva,  young  revolutionary  centre, 
47-8 

Oeodesmus  bilineatus,  106-7 

Geophilus  (see  Myriapoda) 

George,  Henry,  202 

Germany,  Metchnikoff's  apprecia- 
tion of  scientists  of,  55 

Germany,  declaration  of  war  on 
Russia,  240  ;  on  France,  242 

Giessen,  Naturalists'  Congress  at, 
1864,  44-5 

Glycobacter  peptonicus,  221,  222 

Goethe,  Faust,  195,  204 

Goldschmidt,  Dr.,  78,  79 

Gottingen  News,  Leuckart's  memoir 
on  Nematodes  in,  48 

Granada,  124 

Gravitz,  169  n. 

Grove,  The  Unity  of  Physical  Forces, 
32 

Guancios,  Caves  of  the,  77 

Haeckel,  theory  of  the  gastrcea,  108 

Hayem,  169  n. 

Heitz,  Dr.,  231 

Heligoland,  flora  and  fauna  of,  43 

Helmholtz,  48 

Henle,  Prof.,  54 


INDEX 


293 


Herzen,  Passe  et  pensees,  47 
Hirschfeld,  169  n. 
Hodounof,  19,  20,  22 
Hueppe,  Prof.,  131 
Hugo,  Victor,  260  n. 

lamanouchi,  M.,  211 

Immunity,   122 ;    opposing  theories 

of  Behring  and  Metchnikoff,  148, 

149,     150,     151;      ancient     and 

modern      theories      of,     168-70 ; 

Metchnikoff 's   exposition  of,  171- 

180 

Immunity  in  Infectious  Diseases,  170 
Infantile  cholera,  207,  220-21 
Inflammation,  Metchnikoff's  lectures 

on,  152-3 
Intestinal  flora,  problem   of,  196-8, 

206;      further     researches,     220, 

235,  280  ;  experiments  with  rats, 

221,  222 
Intracellular  digestion,  Metchnikoff's 

studies  of,  57,  105,  107,  110,  116, 

170,  277,  278 

Jaures,  assassination  of,  240 

Jelly-fish,  Metchnikoff's  monograph 
on  embryology  of,  126 

Jenner  and  method  of  antivariolic 
vaccination,  168 

Journal  de  Moscou,  Elie  Metchni- 
koff's first  publication  in,  33 

Jupille,  M.,  155 

Kalmuk  steppes,  Metchnikoff's 
journey  to,  82-3  ;  description  of, 
215-16  ;  Metchnikoff's  anthropo- 
logical work  among  natives  of, 
84-5 ;  liability  of  natives  to 
tuberculosis,  210-11  ;  Pasteur  In- 
stitute expedition  to,  212 ;  descrip- 
tion of,  215-17 

Keferstein,  Prof.,  54 

Kent,  Saville,  discoveries  of  Proto- 
spongia,  110 

Kharkoff,  1,1 6,20;  Lycee,  progress  in, 
28  ;  University,  ancient  methods 
in,  31-2,  37,  40 

Kherson,  peasants'  grievances  and 
vexatious  conduct  in,  113,  114 

Kirghiz  steppes,  endemic  plague  in, 
211  ;  Russian  plague  mission  to, 
211,  215,  218;  description  of,  214 

Kleinenberg,  Prof.,  encouragement 
of  Metchnikoff,  118,  119 

Kleps,  169  n. 

Koch,  Prof.,  265;  attitude  to 
Metchnikoff's  theory,  133,  149 


Kolliker,  Prof.,  37 

Kovalevsky,  Alexander,  friendship 
with  Metchnikoff,  49,  58 ;  work  of, 
51,52,61,  62,  72,  73,  108  ;  divides 
Baer  Prize  with  Metchnikoff,  58 

Kriloff,  26 

Kiihne,  41 

Latapie,  M.,  155 

Law  of  Life,  The,  223 

Lemons  sur  la  pathologie  comparee  de 

Vinflammation,  152-3 
Leube,  Dr.,  231 
Leuckart,  Prof.,  43-5,  46 
Lilienfiorse,  199 
Lister,  Dr.,  148 
Loeffler,  265 

London  Congress,  149-50 
Lubarsch,  attacks  on  Metchnikoff's 

theory,  232 
Lucernaria,  73 

Macaques  or  Barbary  apes,  124 ; 
Metchnikoff's  typhoid  experi- 
ments with,  207-8 

Macrophages,  163-4,  166,  178,  184 

Madeira,  75 

Maeterlinck,  Maurice,  228-9 

Maisonneuve,  M.,  191 

Malaga,  gardens  of,  124 

Manoukhine,  Dr.,  231 

Martin,  Dr.,  256,  273 

Medusa?,  72,  73,  116 

Mertens,  76,  79 

Messenger  of  Europe,  Metchnikoff's 
contributions  to,  208-9,  239  n. 

Messina,  Metchnikoff's  work  at,  61 

Messina,  the  Metchnikoff  home  at, 
115 

Messina,  earthquake  at,  1908, 115, 116 

Metazoa,  277 

Metchnikoff,  Dmitri  Ivanovitch, 
devotion  to  his  brother's  family, 
5,  17,  21,  28 ;  appearance  and 
character,  5-6  ;  other  references, 
12,  14 

Metchnikoff,  Elie  (or  Ilia),  parents' 
home  at  Panassovka,  1-3  ;  birth 
of,  3  ;  appearance  and  disposition 
in  childhood,  8-11  ;  early  indica- 
tions of  unusual  intelligence,  9, 
16,  20  ;  an  adventurous  journey 
to  Slaviansk,  12-15;  life  at 
Kharkoff,  16-18  ;  develops  natural 
history  tastes  with  Hodounoff, 
20-22;  ancestry,  23-7;  entry 
into  and  progress  at  Kharkoff 
Lycee,  28-34 ;  friendships  and  their 


294         LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 


influence,  with  Bogomoloff,  29, 
with  Tchelkoff,  32-3,  42,  with 
Kovalevsky,  48  seq.,  with  Cien- 
kovsky,  59-60,  with  Kleinenberg, 
Virchow,  and  others,  118-19,  with 
Pasteur,  132  seq.,  various,  56, 
58-9,  63,  65,  93,  137;  adopts 
atheism  and  shows  continued 
interest  in  natural  history,  29-30  ; 
love  of  music,  31,  34,  54-5,  93; 
plans  a  scientific  career,  31  ;  early 
publications,  33,  41  ;  devotion  to 
his  mother,  35,  93-4 ;  early  love 
affairs,  35-6  ;  abortive  journey  to 
Wiirzburg,  37-9 ;  at  Kharkoff 
University,  40-42;  an  early  con- 
troversy with  Kuhne,  41  ;  in- 
fluenced by  Darwin,  41,  50  ;  early 
researches  and  privations  in  Heli- 
goland, 43-5  ;  letters  to  his  mother 
quoted,  44-6,  65-9 ;  at  Giessen 
Congress,  45  ;  work  and  relations 
with  Leuckart,  45-8 ;  eyesight 
troubles,  46,  62,  82-3,  105 ;  visit 
to  Geneva,  46-8 ;  researches, 
Mediterranean,  48-53,  56-7,  61 
seq.,  in  the  Crimea,  59-60,  at 
Spezzia,  etc.,  70-73,  anthropo- 
logical among  Kalmuks,  84-5,  in 
intracellular  digestion  and  Ephe- 
meridse,  105-11,  116,  in  infectious 
diseases,  128,  in  tuberculosis  and 
phagocytosis,  133 ;  at  Pasteur 
Institute,  135-6,  in  cholera,  154- 
157,  in  immunity,  168-80,  in 
senile  atrophies  and  intestinal  flora, 
182-9,  191,  196-8,  206-8,  220  seq., 
in  syphilis,  189-91,  in  infantile 
cholera  and  typhoid,  207-8,  220, 
in  tuberculosis  and  plague  among 
Kalmuks,  210-19;  silk  -  worm 
moth,  238-9,  251  ;  contribution  to 
foundation  of  comparative  em- 
bryology, 51,  56 ;  studies  in 
Germany  and  opinion  of  German 
scientists,  54-5,  57  ;  illnesses,  55- 
56,  65, 104, 181,  217,  222,  229  seq., 
249  ;  return  to  Russia  and  Odessa 
University  appointment,  58-60  ; 
appointed  Zoology  Professor  at 
Petersburg,  61 ;  interest  in  edu- 
cational questions,  63,  100;  life 
at  Petersburg,  63-4,  71  seq.  ; 
engagement  and  first  marriage, 
66-70;  reappointed  to  Odessa 
University  and  difficulties  of 
appointment,  73,  75,  78,  98  seq.  ; 
his  philosophical  theory  and  its 


evolution,  74-7,  184-9,  191-5,  209, 
222-4,  228-9,  281-3  ;  visit  to  and 
life  at  Madeira,  75-7;  death  of  first 
wife,  79 ;  attempts  suicide,  80-81  ; 
Mile.  Fedorovitch's  description  of, 
83 ;  journey  to  Astrakhan  steppes, 
82-3  ;  studies  of  childhood,  86  ; 
meeting  with  family  of  second 
wife  and  growing  intimacy,  86-8, 
94,  Setchenoffs  description  of, 
88  ;  harmony  of  second  marriage, 
89-95  ;  character  and  disposition, 
96-8,  143-5 ;  views  of  women's 
scientific  capacity,  103 ;  inocu- 
lates himself  with  relapsing  fever, 
104 ;  and  the  phagocyte  theory, 
first  statement  of,  110,  describes 
first  inception  of,  116-17,  pro- 
gress in,  117-22,  126,  128,  142, 
148,  150-53,  158-66,  183,  208-9, 
controversies  and  attacks  on, 
131,  133,  142,  147-9;  difficulties 
over  Russian  estate  manage- 
ment, 112-14 ;  life  at  Messina, 
115-19;  again  returns  to  Russia, 
119;  journey  through  Spain  to 
Tangiers,  123-4  ;  life  at  Tangiers 
and  Villefranche,  125-6  ;  describes 
work  at  Bacteriological  Institute, 
Odessa,  127-8 ;  describes  first 
meeting  with  Pasteur,  132 ; 
Pasteur's  offer,  132;  visit  to 
Berlin  and  reception  by  German 
scientists,  133 ;  work  and  in- 
fluence at  Pasteur  Institute,  135- 
146  ;  M.  Roux's  appreciations  of, 
138-9,  150,  Ij59  ;  other  apprecia- 
tions, 141,  165  ;  life  at  Sevres  and 
Paris,  144-5  ;  visit  to  England, 
149 ;  triumph  at  London  Con- 
gress, 150  ;  interest  in  Pfeiffer's 
phenomenon,  158-60  ;  theory  and 
studies  of  natural  death,  192-5, 
230-35,  237-8,  252 ;  receives  Nobel 
Prize,  199 ;  journey  to  Sweden 
and  Russia,  199-200;  visit  to 
Tolstoi,  200-205 ;  expedition  to 
Kalmuk  steppes,  210  seq.  ;  un- 
pleasant incident  of  lacto-bacilli 
fabrication,  225-7 ;  kindness  to 
friends,  227-8 ;  descriptions  of 
his  own  symptoms,  etc.,  229-36, 
250-51,  263-5;  holidays  at  St. 
Leger  -  en  -  Yvelines,  228,  237-9, 
251 ;  effect  of  war  on,  239-46,  261  ; 
preface  to  Founders  of  Modern 
Medicine  quoted,  247-8 ;  plans 
a  work  on  sexual  questions,  249, 


INDEX 


295 


252,  260;  jubilee  celebrations, 
249-50 ;  last  illness,  254-73 ;  last 
days  at  Pasteur  Institute,  256-73  ; 
death,  273  ;  synopsis  of  work  and 
achievements,  276-81 

Metchnikoff,  Madame,  meeting  with 
Metchnikoff,  87,  parents  and 
family,  87-8,  94,  marriage,  89, 
90,  relations  between  husband 
and  wife,  90-95,  illness  of,  in 
1880,  104,  loss  of  both  parents, 
112,  illnesses  of,  123,  181,  252 

Metchnikoff,  Emilia  Lvovna  (nee 
Nevahovna),  appearance  and  dis- 
position, 2,  5,  6,  93;  a  capable 
housewife,  3  ;  a  devoted  mother, 
4,  6,  13,  14,  18,  37  ;  delicacy  of, 
22  ;  ancestors,  26  ;  influence  on 
Elie  Metchnikoff's  choice  of  a 
career,  41  ;  endeavours  to  prevent 
Elie's  first  marriage,  66  ;  letters 
to,  from  Elie  quoted,  44-5,  65-69  ; 
death  of,  94 

Metchnikoff,  Elena  Samoilovna, 
4,  8,  10 

Metchnikoff,  Ilia  Ivanovitch,  home 
at  Panassovka,  1,  appearance 
and  character,  2,  marriage,  2,  easy- 
going temperament,  and  extrava- 
gance, 2-6,  attitude  to  his  family 
and  servants,  6-7 

Metchnikoff,  Ivan,  3,  8 

Metchnikoff,  Katia,  appearance  and 
character,  8,  marriage,  16,  21, 
other  references,  12,  14 

Metchnikoff,  Leo,  3,  8,  illness  of, 
19,  gifted  but  superficial  nature 
of,  19,  46-7  ;  activities  in  Geneva 
and  connection  with  Garibaldi 
Movement,  46-7,  80 

Metchnikoff,  Nicholas,  birth  of,  3  ; 
appearance,  8 ;  his  great-aunt's 
favourite,  8,  10 ;  boyhood  pur- 
suits, 17-18;  enters  Kharkoff 
Lycee,  28 ;  life  in  Kharkoff,  31 ; 
death  of,  230 

Microphagw,  163-4,  166 

Morosoffs,  the,  of  Moscow,  189 

Moscow,  Anthropological  Society  of, 
Metchnikoff's  report  to,  85 

Moscow,  International  Congress, 
1897,  164-5;  Skin  Disease  Re- 
search Society,  189 

Miiller,  Fritz,  Far  Darwin,  50 

Muller's  Archives,  Metchnikoff's 
memoir  on  the  Vorticella  in,  41 

Myriapoda,     embryology     of,     76,  I 
85 


Naegeli,  169  n. 

Naples,  cholera  epidemic  in,  1865, 
53;  Metchnikoff's  first  stay  at, 
49-53,  second  stay,  62 

Napoleon,  260  n. 

Natural  death,  Metchnikoff's  studies 
of,  237,  280-81 

Natural  science,  Metchnikoff's  cam- 
paign for  the  teaching  of,  100 

Nematodes,  Metchnikoff's  dis- 
coveries, etc.,  42,  46 

Nevahovitch,  Leo,  26 

Nicholas  I.,  28 

Nobel  Prize,  the,  199 

Nocard,  M.,  265;  appreciation  of 
Metchnikoff,  165 

Norden,  Dr.,  231 

Odessa,  University  of,  58-9,  Metch- 
nikoff's work  at,  60-61,  98-9, 
party  intrigues  at,  75,  101,  rights 
to  autonomy  threatened,  101-3, 
Congress,  1883,  120,  bacteriologi- 
cal Institute  founded  at,  127 

Oldenburg,  Prince  of,  129 

Panassovka,  the  home  of  the 
Metchnikoff s,  1,  3,  fire  at,  20-21 

Parenchymella,  explanation  of,  109- 
110 

Paris,  International  Congress,  1900, 
170 

Paris,  air  raids  on,  246 

Pasteur,  antirabic  inoculations,  127, 
Metchnikoff's  first  interview  with, 
132,  friendship  with  Metchnikoff 
and  interest  in  phagocyte  theory, 
137,  experiments  in  vaccination 
andimmunity,  168-9,  death  of,  181, 
discovery  of  lactic  fermentation 
microbe,  193,  age  at  death,  265 

Pasteur  Institute,  the,  132,  Metch- 
nikoff's work  and  influence  at,  134- 
142,  144,  Metchnikoff's  apprecia- 
tion of,  139,  effect  of  outbreak  of 
European  War  on,  244-5 ;  celebra- 
tion of  Metchnikoff's  jubilee,  249 

Peter  the  Great,  Tsar  of  Russia,  24, 
25,26 

Petersburg,  2,  19,  Congress  of 
Russian  Naturalists  at,  1867,60-61, 
difficult  conditions  of  Metchni- 
koff's work  at,  63-4, 71,  foundation 
of  Bacteriological  Institute  at, 
129 

Petersburg  Geographical  Society,  82 

Petrushka,  4,  12,  13 


296 


LIFE  OF  ELIE  METCHNIKOFF 


Pettenkoffer,  154,  236 
Pfeiffer,  265,  experiments  in  extra- 
cellular destruction  of  microbes, 
158-60,    165-6,    175;    attacks    on 
Metchnikoff's  theory,  232 
Phagocytella,  110,  126 

Phagocytes,  origin  of  Metchnikoff's 
theory  of,  51,  57,  278,  develop- 
ment of  theory,  110,  111,  113, 
120-22,  142,  inception  of  theory, 
116-19,  Baumgarten's  hostile 
criticism  of  theory,  126  ;  applica- 
tion of  theory  to  erysipelas,  128, 
opposition  to  theory,  131,  151, 
controversy,  148,  renewed  ex- 
periments for  proving  theory,  148, 
149,  150,  151,  152,  153,  279; 
vindication  of,  at  Buda-Pest  Con- 
gress, 159,  160 ;  experiments 
with  toxins  and  poisons,  160-62; 
experiments  with  antitoxins,  162- 
164,  and  doctrine  of  immunity, 
170-80,  and  senility,  183,  280  ' 

Phagocytosis,  Metchnikoff's  first 
paper  on,  read  at  Odessa  Congress 
of  Physicians  and  Naturalists, 
1883,  120 

Phyllirhoe,  175 

Picot,  E.,  Chronicle  of  John  Neculua 
quoted,  23 

Pirquet's  test,  211 

Pleomorphism  of  Microbes,  Metchni- 
koff's memoir,  1888,  211 

Poland,  Revolution  in,  1830,  26 

Polypi,  72 

Popular  Star,  29 

Preyer,  theory  of  fatigue  and  sleep, 
194 

Protospongia,  discovery  of,  by  Saville 
Kent,  110 

Pushkin,  2,  26 

Radlkoffer,  The  Crystals  of  Proteic 
Substances,  33 

Rasputin,  219 

Recklinghausen,  169  n. 

Relapsing  fever,  experiments  to 
prove  phagocytic  reaction,  129 

Renon,  Dr.,  255 

Rotifera,  193,  237-8 

Rousseau,  J.  J.,  Confessions  and  the 
Nouvelk  Heloise,  260  n. 

Roux,  Dr.,  137,  255,  appreciation 
of  Metchnikoff  quoted,  138-9, 
141,  159,  249  ;  collaboration  with 
Metchnikoff,  150,  162,  163,  164, 
wins  Osiris  Prize,  189 ;  reply  to 
campaign  against  Metchnikoff, 


226 ;  friendship  with  and  visits  to 
Metchnikoff    in    his    last    illness, 
257,  267,  273 
Rubenstein,  M.,  260 

St.  Leger-en-Yvelines,  228,  237 

Salimbeni,  Dr.,  163,  184,  211,  215, 
256,  266,  272-3 

Sanarelli,  Dr.,  discovery  of  choleri- 
form  bacilli,  156 

Sarepta,  217-18 

Schaudinn,  discovery  of  syphilitic 
treponema,  190 

Scorpion,  the,  Metchnikoff's  re- 
searches concerning  the  develop- 
ment of,  71 

Senility  and  death,  Metchnikoff's 
views  on  and  researches,  182-8, 
191-5 

Serums,  their  action,  177 

Setchenoff,  Prof.,  52-3,  71,  73,  78, 
239  ;  autobiography  quoted,  88 

Sevres,  Metchnikoff  Villa  at,  144,  145 

Siphonophora,  72 

Slaviansk,  adventurous  journey  of 
the  Metchnikoff  family  to,  12 

Spain,  Metchnikoff 's eventful  journey 
through,  80 

Spatar,  Joury  Stepanovitch,  26 

Spatar,  Nicholas  Milescu,  exploits 
and  adventures  of,  23-4,  mission 
to  China,  24,  literary  activities 
and  services  to  Peter  the  Great, 
25,  death  of,  25 

Spezzia,  the  Metchnikoffs  sojourn 
at,  70-71 

Sponges  and  Echinodermata,  Metch- 
nikoff's study  of,  61,  72,  106,  117 

Stepanita,  Prince,  his  dealings  with 
Nicholas  Milescu  Spatar,  24 

Syphilis,  Metchnikoff's  researches 
on,  189-91,  280 

Tangiers,  journey  to,  through  Spain, 

123-4,  description  of,  124-6 
Tarassevitch,  Dr.,  212 
Tchistovitch,  Dr.,  231 
Time  for  Marriage,  The,  Metchnikoff's 

paper  on,  77 
Tolstoi,    Leon,   a    day    at    lasnala 

Paliana,  200-205 
Tolstoi,  Countess,  203 
Tornaria,     Metchnikoff's    discovery 

concerning,  70 
Toxins  and  the  phagocyte  theory, 

experiments,  160  seq. 
Trattoria  della  harmonia,  the,  53 
Trieste,  Metchnikoff's  work  at,  62 


INDEX 


297 


Tschelkoff,  Prof.,  32,  33,  40,  41,  42 

Tshori,  Convent  of,  217 

Tuberculosis,  researches  on  phago- 
cytosis, in,  133;  Metchnikoff's 
theory  of  natural  vaccination, 
210-11,  218 

Typhoid  fever,  207-8 

Vaquez,  Dr.,  230 
Veillon,  Dr.,  256 
Vienna,  Hygienists'  Conference  at, 

1887,  131 
Villa  Orotava,  giant  dragon-tree  at, 

Virchow,  cellular  theory,  32,  48, 
169  n. ;  encouragement  of  Metchni- 
koff,  118-19;  Archives,  publication 


of  Metchnikoff's  researches  in,  122, 
129 

Volga,  description  of,  212-13 

von  Noorden,  182 

von  Sieboldt,  Prof.,  54 

Vorticella,  the,  Metchnikoff's  mem- 
oir on,  41 

Waldeyer,  169  n. 

Weinberg,  M.,  184 

Widal,  Dr.,  255,  256 

Wollman,  pupil  and  collaborator  of 
Metchnikoff,  196-7,  221 

Wiirzburg,  University  of,  Metchni- 
koff's abortive  journey  to,  37 

Zalensky,  32 


THE   END 


Printed  in  Great  Britain  by  R.  &  R.  CLARK,  LIMITED,  Edinburgh. 


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